Stargazing
by Missinghummingbird
Summary: Peridot sits just outside the barn, trying to watch the stars like Garnet does. She doesn't get it. Then Amethyst joins her, and things spiral out of control. *previously a simple one-shot, now a growing story*
1. Chapter 1

Nothing really happens here. Amedot stuff; nothing romantic, but they totally like each other but are oblivious to it. Because I am trash and said so, so enjoy. Also should note: Not edited or proofread, so there may be errors (there probably will be). Lemme know your thoughts.

Stargazing

Steven stared off at the green gem sitting in the grass not too far away. Even if she was certainly within walking distance, he had a particular feeling that she did not want anyone's company. She was speaking into her cassette for her logs, likely going on about the day's events.

Not that he could blame her. He glanced down at the ground and kicked the dirt lightly, spreading dust around his feet. "Do you think she'll be okay?"

"She did just insult her own Diamond, essentially betraying Homeworld. One she dedicated herself to" Garnet glanced at him, noting his downtrodden look. She brushed a hand against his hair, ruffling it. "She probably just needs space to adjust to things."

"I do admit, I was surprised she stood up to Yellow Diamond like that. Partly for our sake, at that," said Pearl, arms crossed.

"It was sweet, are you kidding?" Amethyst shouted, leaning back. "She tore Yellow D to pieces! Ahaha!"

Steven glanced at Peridot again. "She probably doesn't think of it like that. It must be hard to turn back on your home like that."

"It'll take time and effort for her to get used to Earth." Garnet gave him a half grin. "I'm sure she'll be fine."

"I kinda wanna talk to her… she looks lonely." Sure, she didn't really look lonely, certainly not to him. However, that didn't mean he wanted her to be by herself when she likely was thinking about what happened that day. Then his stomach growled, and he realized the diamond incident made him skip dinner.

Amethyst chuckled. "Nah, little man, go have something to chow on. I'll handle her."

"Really?"

"Sure," she shrugged, then thought about something. "But toss me a chip bag first."

"I'm reluctant to admit that the star filled sight is an admirable one. There are multiple stars that can be seen that even I have witnessed before during the travel to Earth. Still, I fail to comprehend the purpose of 'stargazing.' Maybe it's a permafusion activity only."

The approach of footsteps made her stop, as well as an obnoxious crunching sound. She paused her log and looked up to see Amethyst walking towards her.

"Wassup, megadork?"

Peridot watched Amethyst sit down beside her and toss the remaining contents of the crinkling bag into her mouth. Followed by said bag. Peridot made a disgusted noise. "I don't understand this.."

Amethyst snorted. "You don't understand a lot of things here."

"But this is meaningless!" She placed her log recorder on the grass and gestured out toward the twilight sky. "I'm trying this… stargazing Garnet talked about. And there's no point by doing it."

"Ehh, there's no meaning to it. You just do it."

Peridot glared at the sky again, trying to absorb this information. Doing things without purpose… she really did not get Earth and its customs that the Crystal Gems have come to accept. The Crystal Gems… of which she was now a part of.

She sighed. "I'm also hoping this will ease my stress considering today's events. It's not very successful."

Amethyst frowned, a look of genuine concern on her face. "Not feeling great, huh?"

"I only betrayed my Diamond, as well as Homeworld, the very planet I worked at and for all of my life," Peridot deadpanned, frowning back.

"Soooo I'm guessing that's a no."

Peridot's glare deepened.

Amethyst's smirk returned. "Relax, I was joking. Well, sorta."

"I'm sure that's what you and humans would call 'bad timing.'" At least that was what she had gathered from interacting with Steven for so long. Because while Amethyst's jokes often annoyed her, she still smiled slightly-though she tried to hide it.

"... Yeah." Amethyst's voice softened.

"Why are you here?"

Amethyst wrapped a hand on her other arm. "Well… you looked kinda miserable."

"You came here to tell me that?" Peridot asked, eyebrows narrowed a little, as this wasn't a reminder that she needed.

"Just looked like you could use some company." Amethyst shrugged. She leaned down to Peridot's eye level. "Ooor, do you wanna mope around by yourself?"

"What would we talk about, if you're here?"

Amethyst gave her a weird look. "I'm not sure. You don't plan talking, it just happens."

"There's a lot of improvisation on Earth." Peridot grimaced. "It's… rather irritating."

"Well, I like it." She raised her hands.

"I'm sure you do."

Amethyst still joined her. Peridot didn't even argue-as if she could tell a Quartz what to do. Besides, her company was most welcoming, and when Amethyst leaned back to lay on the grass, she followed suit. It gave her a better view of the dark blue sky, filled with so many stars and planets that were so far away...

"I'm gonna be honest, I'm glad you told off Yellow Diamond."

Peridot's eyes widened. She jerked up, hands clenching in the air. "Excuse me?!" _Did I hear that right?!_

Amethyst's smirk was wide and proud. "It was pretty cool, ya know. I was totally surprised—but also impressed. I didn't know you had it in you."

Peridot jumped up, eyes shrinking. "It was dangerous. She'll crush my gem with the heel of her gravity connectors once I return to Homeworld—if the Cluster doesn't kill us first." She quickly sat back down, wrapping her arms around herself.

Amethyst didn't say anything for a moment. Then she nudged Peridot lightly, making the green gem flinch. "We'll beat that Cluster, I know that much. That's nothing. And don't worry about 'your highness.' We won't let her crush you—or anyone, really."

Peridot met her gaze, tapping her touch stumps together. "I'm shocked, considering you probably wanted to do the same no less than a few hours ago." The thought made her cringe and turn away again.

"I mean, we wouldn't do _that,_ but, well…" Amethyst sighed. "I almost thought you were betraying us."

Peridot's head shot up, and she put her hands on the ground. "How so?"

Amethyst shrugged. "I dunno, sell us out to Yellow Diamond, have her send down more gems to kick our butts—junk like that." She hid her eyes in her mane of faded white. "

"That wasn't my intention. It's obvious that this Earth holds plenty of life and renewable resources that could be sustainable for all gem kind—"

"And for other things, too," Amethyst interrupted, voice growing stern abruptly. Peridot shut herself up. "Like all the people and the planets… we protect Earth because there's a lot here _to_ protect, you know. Oh, and food, of course." She chuckled.

"Gems don't even need to eat in the first place."

"You should try it sometime." She winked.

Peridot rolled her eyes, mentally adding eating to something she probably _wouldn't_ be doing in the future, even if Amethyst suggested it. "My point still stands. Yellow Diamond simply didn't understand that blowing up this planet would be a waste of resources. She didn't look at it at any logical standpoint!" she exclaimed, arms out forward.

"Is that the only reason?" Amethyst asked, a hint of curiosity rising in her tone.

Peridot pondered this for a moment, squeezing her toes. "Well, there are other assets to Earth that are… somewhat appealing."

"Such as?" Amethyst poked her in the side, showing teeth a teasing smile. "C'mon, spill. Is it the food, the views, or is it the food?"

"You."

"Me?"

Peridot gulped, recoiling at her own response. "And the—er, Steven has shown to be a hybrid that has good intentions, as well." Still feeling lightheaded by her previous response, she continued with a stutter, "And y-you're clearly the best gem here, in terms of authority." She paused, and pointed. "Or, you would be."

Amethyst looked at her for a moment, but Peridot could not possibly understand what to tell from her expression. "Thanks." And she shied away, half of her face hiding in her hair.

Yet the downess in her voice gripped at Peridot's chest. To hurt Amethyst's feelings _again_ … she couldn't possibly let this go on again. Holding her hands together tightly, she added, "And… and losing you because of the Cluster or even Yellow Diamond is a bothersome, hypothetical situation. One I don't approve of."

"Heh, that so?"

Peridot relaxed upon seeing Amethyst's lips rise again. "I did just say that."

"Just… checking." They both lay back in the grass again. The sky blinked over them, like glorious diamonds in the sky. Peridot breathed in the quiet, because it felt nice at the moment. Of course, she was still focused on the Cluster, on Yellow Diamond, but… the exhausting day made her want to forget it for one night. Then Amethyst spoke again. "You said you would return to Homeworld—you still wanna go back?"

"Of course!" Her voice rose, as if it were obvious. Which to her, it was clearly so.

"But why? That place sounds… lame and boring. Whenever Garnet or Pearl tell me about it, I go to snoozeville." Amethyst's nose scrunched up, and she stuck her tongue out. "Earth's wayyyy better."

Peridot pursed her lips. "It is not lame or boring. It's endless with unique architect and has technology that puts these humans to shame. Their history is enormous and fascinating. Yes, all classes are set no matter what, but they're like that for organization. Even... if I betrayed them for this planet." Her voice lowered, and her face fell. "They'll… never let me go, if I returned. But…" She decided to pick at the tiny pieces of grass beside her, as opposed to look at Amethyst or the sky. "I, um, have nowhere else to go."

Amethyst leaned in, as if to get Peridot to look at her. It failed. "You'll get used to it here, I know it. I mean, I was born here, so of course I like it here way better. But I like it for a reason."

"Can you show me?"

Amethyst blinked. "Uhh, why?"

"If I'm stuck on this planet, I might as well see what there is to offer. See what's so special about it enough for you Crystal Cl—Gems to turn against Homeworld. I have to learn to adjust to my surroundings if I don't want to get torn to pieces." She waited to continue her sentence, tapping the recorder sitting beside her in the grass again. The recorder that, while she could complain into it all she wanted, wouldn't do much for her out in this giant planet. "I've, uh, learned that by now, from experience."

Amethyst's gaze stayed on her fro a few extra moments. "Y-yeah, I can show you around sometime." She glanced back up. "I know a few places, but probably nothing you'd like too much. Maybe not your style."

"Well, while I was stuck here before I got trapped in Steven's bathroom, I did come across some fascinating sights. Nothing like the temples or other structures back home, but—ooh, ooh, I found it!" Her excitement made her sit back up, and she pointed straight up into the sky.

"What?"

"Over there, that star right there. Right under that long constellation." Peridot pointed, closing the distance between them to help guide Amethyst to the star she found.

Amethyst squinted. "I think I see it. What is it?"

"It's Homeworld!" Her face lit up, stars in her eyes. To see such a wonderful planet like Homeworld from so far away brought a hint of delight to her. "Good eye." Though Amethyst didn't sound too impressed, she grinned at Peridot with a quick nudge to the shoulder.

Peridot's eyebrow rose. "I have two eyes."

Amethyst cackled loudly, throwing her head back. When she brought it back down, she wiped a tear from the corner of an eye. "Oooh, never mind. Peridot, I hope you never leave."

"W-what?" she stuttered, this information catching her off guard. Just two hours ago, it wasn't an impossible thought to think they wanted her dead or, at the very least, gone far, far away. Now the best gem among them wanted her to stay… forever? They _still_ didn't make any sense!

"You're not bad for a gem that, well," Amethyst lay further against the grass, letting her long hair spread onto the ground, "tried to kill us a while back."

"Thank you?" The compliment didn't sound so positive.

"I'm just saying that you're cool." Amethyst shut her eyes. "And it's nice having you around. You should stick around."

 _Cool…_ Peridot repeated in her head. And she smiled as she also repeated, _Nice._ Both words brought a warm feeling in her chest area. Now _those_ were compliments. With a glance at Amethyst, that feeling rose, and she said, "Did you know that I can name every star out there right now, if I can make a star map? Working with screens and surveying the planets around us made us figure out every star and constellation out there, as well."

Amethyst let out an amused noise, still looking at the sky. "Gee, that's great, nerd."

Peridot's shoulders slouched. "I've come to see that as a strange compliment from you."

"Mhh, pretty much! Aheheh!" she laughed.

Peridot's eyes wandered to the sky again, and over at the barn, she caught Steven and Pearl talking. Or rather, Steven talked over a snack in his hand while Pearl looked over the drill over and over. The tidiness of Pearl was certainly acceptable, she admitted. On the other side of the barn, Garnet was watching the sky, too. Like she saw her last time.

"Do you think you can clarify why Garnet likes this so much? Or how she does so?" Sure, it was nice, but she kept to herself. She didn't have Amethyst to keep her company like Peridot did.

Amethyst looked over at Garnet, then back at Peridot. "I mean, Garnet did say to us that she prefers being together when looking at the stars. It's sorta like watching a movie, only nothing's really happening. I don't get it either, but it sure looks nice." And back to starwatching again.

"But she's alone. Or…" Peridot frowned. "Is this about her being a permafusion?" While getting used to Garnet's constant togetherness, it still baffled and brought many questions to her. All she hoped was that she didn't end up saying anything that would bring her inches from the gem's giant gauntlets.

Unlike Garnet, Amethyst didn't appear bothered. She nodded. "Eyup! The, you know, love thing going on between them makes it better, I guess."

"Stargazing is a… love thing?" Peridot figured out the concept of love upon watching that one episode of Camp Pining Hearts. It was what she wanted between Pierre and Percy. It sounded nice and sweet, however ridiculously sentimental it sounded. Yet she couldn't describe it entirely.

Amethyst flinched, lips curled in an 'o' shape. "Not all the time! But only if… you know, they want it to be."

"What's the difference if they do?"

Amethyst let out boisterous laughter again, and Peridot jumped an inch away. "You're asking the wrong gem, Peri. I don't do that romantic junk, really."

"Oh." Peridot did not comment on this further. She couldn't. And she had no clue why. And in exchange, Amethyst stopped talking, too, which surprised Peridot plenty.

Peridot took a look at Amethyst and thanked her Diamond that the purple gem was not looking back. She barely noticed Peridot staring at her. And she had no idea what brought this out. She was confused quite a bit when it came to Amethyst. Not the gem herself, but… something about her. What that was, Peridot was stumped. But Amethyst's lack of attention allowed her to notice the small details about the Crystal Gem. The small cuts in her black top, how despite how thick and wild her hair looked, it still was brushed and didn't look tangled, her relaxed and rather sleepy eyes—

"I'm starting to get the hang of this." She had no idea where these words came from, or what she was actually getting the hang of. Did it have to do with _her_ or…

"What's that?"

Oh, no. It _definitely_ had to do with Amethyst. She gulped. "Stargazing. I… I like it."

"Good to hear, Peri-dactyl," Amethyst chuckled under her breath. And she glanced back at Peridot. "You ready to head back to the barn? Unless ya wanna snooze in the grass." She patted the grass, wearing a wide grin.

Peridot could feel blush rising to her cheeks, which wasn't a common thing until she met these accused abominations that became her friends. And she prayed that Amethyst didn't catch how intensely she was looking at her. "Sure!" she said with a smile that was a bit panicky.

Amethyst stood up, stretching a bit to pull at any tired muscles. When she got up as well, Peridot couldn't stare at her anymore, in fear of further blushing. She looked down at the grass they sat on, saw the imprints of their bodies sitting close to one another. Then her head turned to the sky, which _did_ look beautiful with all those stars and all those colors. Not many views like this were on Homeworld.

"I'd like to do this again tomorrow!"

Oh stars, had she lost her mind? What was her thought process for this? Was there any thought process to this? No, of course not, but why did she let it happen? What would happen if she said no? She was already exhausted by the failure she had been reminded of by Yellow Diamond...

Amethyst looked equally as shocked. "Seriously?"

Peridot blushed again, but grit her teeth. _I made my statement, I might as well finish it._ Straightening up, she said, clearing her throat, "Yes. So long as the progress on the drill isn't slowed."

The Crystal Gem blinked at first, and Peridot's stomach clenched by the vagueness of this response. Then a smile rose on Amethyst's face. "Sure, why not?" she answered, hand on her hip. "Do whatever you techni-nerds need to do with the drill." She bumped her hip into Peridot's with a snicker. "Let's go! I need food in my stomach, stat, then a good old nap."

"Okay." Peridot watched her walk off, then caught herself and followed after her.


	2. Chapter 2

Alright, I decided to continue this! Where will this go? Uhh... you tell me :P I have basic outlines, but not much other than that. So here's hoping! Lemme know if you enjoy!

Two

Peridot had begun a habit of chewing the tips of pencils and pens. It was an easy habit to fall into, especially when her mind was rushing for answers. In her little corner of the barn, notes were scattered all over the place, with little to no organization in mind. She grumbled to herself as she finished a sentence on the newest piece of paper. As her writing furthered, however, no conclusions could be made. She spit out the pen from her mouth.

"Aaaaaaagh! What is happening to me?" she cried out, falling onto her back in her rage. Her voice cracked as she added in a more distressed tone, "I've finally lost it. Failing my mission and being stuck on earth? That didn't cause it. Joining the Crystal Gems in their mission? It wasn't that either. Gahhhhhhhhhh," she growled, and in her rage, tore the paper in half. Then in quarters. Then further until little pieces of paper fell like snow onto the ground.

Peridot, her teeth gritted, turned around at a sound by the ladder. A few moments later, Steven's head appeared from the floor, a wide grin on his face. As expected, given his cheerful nature, she mentally noted. "Hey, Peridot! I was wondering—well, now I'm wondering something else."

Curiosity was visible on his face as he took in the papers littering the floor, including the small pieces she threw at her feet. Peridot worried if she ended up blushing, feeling flustered by the sight. He would start asking about it, and how could she possibly explain her research? Especially considering she herself could not even begin to explain what was happening?

"Such as?" she asked in hopes of keeping a calm attitude.

"Well, what is all of this?" He stepped away from the ladder and gestured to all the papers strewn about.

"Notes."

"Are you writing down more notes for Camp Pining Hearts? Because you still haven't even gotten to the next episodes yet…" He bent down and picked up one paper.

Just as he began to turn it over, Peridot tore it from his grasp, letting out a territorial hiss. She clutched the paper to her chest and turned away. Steven stepped back, taking the hint fairly well, as well as a bit concerned.

Peridot cleared her throat. "This is all classified. But I will say that this has nothing to do with that entertainment program. I'm just… making notes on… something. Only I have yet to reach any conclusions."

"Is it serious?"

Steven's concern made her turn back to look at him. Darn this strange, innocent hybrid. She smiled. "It's nothing to concern over, I assure you." Then she frowns, feeling a sense of paranoia. One look at these papers, and Steven would figure out everything. And she simply was not ready to let just anyone see these! "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have further observational notes to work out and hope to come to some sort of answer.

He did not look fazed, still looking worried, but then his wide smile returned. "Alright. I, uh, hope you figure it out. We can always help, if you need anything. Just in case. Uhh, see ya." He walked over to the ladder, but then stopped at the edge and looked back over. "Oh, and I was going to ask you before if you wanted to watch another show with me?"

"Another one? Just how many programs are there on Earth?"

Steven counted on his fingers, but after the five, he shrugged. "Well, a lot. There's hundreds."

Peridot's eyes grew. "I still have yet to complete Camp Pining Hearts, so I doubt I can add in some time for another."

"Well, you can always watch as many shows as you like, even if you haven't finished others." Steven smiled. "You can come back to Camp Pining Hearts when we're done, and when that's over—since I'm pretty sure they only had two seasons—you can come back to this one. If you like it, that is."

Peridot gave him a doubtful look. Would anything really be as entertaining as her show, the one that introduced her to such programs? She did not buy it. However, the hopeful look on his face made it incredibly difficult to deny this. Instead, she said, "Will any of the others be watching?"

"I'm pretty sure Amethyst is going to watch with us, too, so—"

"Yes!" was her immediate answer, voice rising.

Steven blinked. Peridot blushed and tried to get a hold of herself. She tried to make up for her outburst by saying, "That would be fine. What time is this show on, by the way?"

"About ten minutes." He made no comments on her reaction, nor questioned any part of it. If anything, he simply looked more excited, his eyes filled with stars. "You'll love it! It's got drama and fighting and robots and-actually, I'll stop before I spoil the whole first fifteen episodes." He blushed and walked off, bidding her goodbye until later.

Peridot stood where she was, feeling embarrassed even further. Just hearing her name made her react so viciously.

"This is all her fault!" she exclaimed, stomping her feet around in a circular pace. With a huff of air, she kicked around some papers, watching them fly around, until she slipped onto her back.

One paper landed on her face. Picking it up, she read it. This piece noted how aesthetically pleasing Amethyst's hair looked. Despite being ridiculously messy, its color, its length, its style, it all worked. It was natural, too.

Peridot frowned. No, no, she knew this change was not Amethyst's doing. If so, this likely would have happened when she met them formerly, all the way back when she was doing work with the Cluster and the shards. This… this thing was recent. And it was unlike any other feeling she had experienced. The question she had yet to answer, though: was this a good or bad thing?

She had no idea.

And it annoyed her to no end. Her cluelessness, the vagueness, the unknown, all of it! It made no sense, had no logic, and it was driving her up a wall. This irritance alone brought anger, stress, fear—

Unable to take the unbridled rage within her, among other emotions she _refused_ to partake in, she retreated not just down the stairs, not just out the barn doors, but farther into the meadows. All the while, she let out an "ahhhhh!" mixed with rage and stress. She ignored the shocked reactions of the other gems and ran ran ran.

"I figured she'd crack eventually." Amethyst leaned onto the grass again with a smirk.

Steven watched her run off with a worried look.

"Is she tired of us already?" Garnet grinned.

Steven shook his head. "No, she was taking notes." His concerned look became bemused again, just as when Peridot had given him her vague answer.

"On… what, exactly?" Pearl asked, with a brow raised and wrists against her sides.

"She wouldn't say. It sounds complicated, though. Should we talk to her?" He turned to all three of them.

They exchanged glances before Garnet decided to answer. "Let's give her time to cool off. Besides, I don't think we'd be much help here… not yet, at least."

"Do you know what's bothering her?" he asked. "I want to help her."

Garnet smiled again. "I have a few ideas, but it's her business, and her business only. So why don't we let her keep to herself? And whatever she wants to tell us, when she decides to, we'll be there to lend a hand or two."

"Or eight!" Steven stretched out his hands, beaming.

She chuckled. "Exactly."

Peridot returned to the barn with a tired sigh. Though not technically tired, she did feel energy exhausted from within her after running away from the barn and kicking rocks and bushes and one tree only to find out kicking trees was _painful_ without limb enhancers.

Rubbing her arm, she walked toward the barn and noticed the others were not around. They were elsewhere, which did not concern her. Then she looked up and noticed Amethyst leaning against the door, and that feeling returned.

"Welcome back to the barn, Peri," she said with a grin. "Thought you'd run off."

"Of course not. I have no other place to stay!" Peridot stared at her. "I wasn't gone that long, was I?"

"Well, it is nighttime now." Amethyst pointed up. "You probably were out for about an hour."

She glanced up and blinked. Rather than a starry sky illuminating the dark night, grey clouds loomed over, making it look darker out. Peridot missed this in her return, apparently. "There aren't any stars." Peridot bit her lip.

"Nah, looks like a cloudy night. It's all dark and spooky out. Heh heh heh." She wiggled her fingers toward Peridot, who was not fazed.

"So much for our plans tonight." Peridot kept looking up, as if expecting the clouds to part for her sake. She frowned.

Amethyst nudged her. "Hey, it's no big deal. There's always tomorrow. They'll still be there."

"You're right." Peridot smiled, mostly for Amethyst's sake.

She nodded. "But I do think we should chill in the barn. You seem, uh… what's the word? Let's see… weird. Extra weird tonight." She pointed at her.

Peridot looked down at herself. "How could you tell?"

"Well, you did run out of the barn, shouting like a rat bit you on the butt." Amethyst rested her hands on her lips, a small smile on her face that did not look amused.

"Oh, right." Peridot straightened her shoulders. "I just needed some air."

"Says the gem who watched one episode of that camp show for hours and hours! I don't think that's the problem." Amethyst's face fell, and her eyebrows knitted downward. She walked closer to Peridot and placed her arm across Peridot's shoulders. "C'mon. Talk to your ol' buddy, Amethyst." The grin returned.

Warning signs blared in her mind. She did not want Amethyst asking or finding out. It would only complicate her situation, and possibly mess with her research. "It's none of your concern, I assure you."

Until she could get closer to a result, she wished to keep it a secret.

Amethyst looked at her for a few pauses that made Peridot feel nervous inside. Then she shrugged. "Alright, then. Buuut, Steven did want me to join him in watching this anime Connie showed him."

"What is… anime?" Peridot's brows jumped.

Amethyst patted her shoulder. "We have much to discuss." She sounded serious for a moment, but a chuckle made it break. "It's like cartoons, but… weirder. And therefore, funnier. For the most part. Wanna watch with us?"

"Sure. If that's fine with you."

Amethyst stared at her, grinning. "I _did_ just invite you, so yeah, it's cool."

"Right."

Amethyst guided Peridot inside with her arm still slung on her shoulders. Peridot wondered if this was common with her. Knowing Amethyst, perhaps it was.

They walked up the stairs to the right and found Steven's makeshift room, resting on his back but with his head facing upward. When he saw the two, he spun around to wave and shout, "Hey, guys!"

"I decided ol' P-girl could use a break or something. So she's going to watch the show with us."

Steven beamed. "That sounds great! You only missed the first five minutes of the episode," he explained. "Which is actually the beginning of a big showdown. Since the first episode's a flashback to how it started."

Peridot sat down crossed-legged beside Steven. "What's happening now?" She saw three females sitting in a food place of sorts, smiling as they exchanged stories. One female, with long hair and wearing square visor-like things on her eyes, glanced between the two others and accused them both of being foolish and dumb. She liked this one already.

"Well, those three are the main characters; that's Bailey, Lacey, and Abbey." Steven pointed to the visor one, then the tan skinned one with the largest chest, and the pale one with markings on her neck and arms, in that order. "They're just talking, and this is before the whole story starts. Bailey's noticing what everyone else does even by the first episode, too!"

"And that is?"

"Lacey and Abbey are meant for each other!" Steven cried out. "But now they're just too busy dealing with the Wrath to talk about it. It's going to happen."

Amethyst shrugged. "Bailey is trying to get them to just wake up and smell the looooove." She shook her shoulders as she said the last word. "They'll figure it out sooner or later."

Steven rested his arms underneath his chin. "I hope it's sooner."

"Well, what is this show about, anyway? What is the Wrath?" Peridot asked, brow quirked.

Steven leaned onto his slumber bag. "Oh, I can answer this!" He cleared his throat, and with eyes shut, explained, " _Armed and Precious_ is about a team of female fighters who keep their city of Tunic Town at peace. Until a mysterious force called the Wrath tries to conquer the town, and it turns people against each other, creates smoke enemies from thin air, all that kinda stuff. So the team called the Initiation is a rebel group who does their best to save their friends and family from being corrupted and destroy the bad guys. All while keeping each other safe as well."

Amethyst chuckled. "So, what, did'ya write all that down?"

"Well, that's how Connie described it." His face lit up. "Oh! And like I said before, Lacey and Abbey are two characters who totally love each other, but they haven't realized it yet." He looked down with mild disappointment. "I hope it's before the series finale. I want to see them being all cute together."

Peridot smiled. "That reminds me of Percy and Pierre! The answer is right in front of them if they simply realized their connection and chemistry proved them to be a powerful couple!"

Steven giggled. "Yeah, kinda like that. Only this show has a lot more seriousness. It's got some funny stuff, too, but it's a bit heavier."

"Better than that camp show, that's for sure." Amethyst shot her a look, her eyes glinting. As if giving Peridot a challenge.

"Oh, really?" Peridot said, her fingers stroking her chin. "We'll see about that." And bringing her knees to her chest, she and the others watched the rest of the first episode.

Suffice to say, it started off slow, but Peridot appreciated the tension because it led to plenty of observations for her to look at afterwards. Plenty of new companionships to form and share to the others. This Lacey and Abbey had drama between each other to spare. This, to put simply, greatly intrigued her.

Once the episode ended, something brushed Peridot's skin, on her arms and her legs. Glancing to her right, she caught Amethyst sitting beside her, laying her head on the mattress Garnet dragged in from the temple. Her body made contact with Peridot's, but she made no signs of concern… unlike Peridot. When she caught Peridot looking at her, she just waved.

Peridot felt her face burn, and that feeling returned. She glanced at her notebook for a moment, tempted to grab it to write down these findings. Then her eyes wandered to the other side, right at Amethyst. If she leaned over, she would break the contact. Something within her downright refused this, and she stayed where she sat, her shoulder and leg brushing against Amethyst's.

They arrived at the fourth episode, and Peridot's eyes did not leave the screen. Something about the situation involving worlds of great, technological advances and robotic machines enticed her. That, and Steven was right; Lacey and Abbey's relationship, or the girls' lack of understanding it, drove her mad, but she cheered and squealed for every moment they made contact. She heard giggling beside her, but did not comment on it.

"You're missing the big picture, Lacey!" Abbey cried out in great distress, dust flying around them. Violins sang in the background. She gripped Lacey's tan, scarred shoulders, who Peridot imagined as a smaller, human Jasper—but she put that thought away when her thoughts came to the Jasper underseas. With a shake of her head, she returned to the program.

"If you fall, we can't catch you!"

Tears slipped from Lacey's face. "But I have to!" she stuttered through the tears. "There's no other way."

"I can't lose you…"

"Just tell her, you engineering clod! Gahhh! Is it not obvious that you share this connection unlike the others?" Peridot shouted, clenching her fists with great anger. She turned to the other two, gesturing toward the screen. "Do these humans fail to see what is happening before them?"

Steven jumped out from his sitting position. "Exactly!" And with a loud sigh, he flopped back onto his mattress, staring at the boarded ceiling.

"It's cause drama, dudes," Amethyst answered. "Though the fact that the fourth episode is so over the top, I kinda wonder how it's gonna end. I bet it's, like, with time traveling junk or, even worse, it's all just a dream and Abbey's in a coma or something. You know, something dumb like that."

Peridot shot her a look. "Time traveling is far from technological advances, even for gems."

"It's television." Amethyst shrugged. "They can get away with it."

Still not pleased, Peridot said, "I'm not sure how I feel about this lack of realism."

Amethyst chuckled. "Says the alien gem from another world. Cause lemme tell you, Peri, there are plenty of people on Earth that don't even know about us."

Peridot pondered this. "I suppose it's not that surprising. We don't make our experiments and visits loud or like a presentation. We come and go. Being too rowdy would create a scene, and m-their Diamond probably wouldn't want that."

"Television isn't meant to be real, anyway!" Steven pointed out, tongue sticking out as he started up another episode. "That's the fun part; anything can happen. Anything!" he repeated with his fists beside him and a grin on his face.

"This includes inanimate objects crying for no reason, apparently," Peridot pointed out.

"Well, yeah, but there is a reason they're crying. They just haven't really gone into it yet. It's probably a big mystery that has yet to be revealed!" Steven mused with a smile.

"I've seen a couple episodes. They could be crying because they're on that show."

Amethyst cracked up, clutching her stomach. "Oh, man, Crying Breakfast Friends shot down!" She pushed Peridot's shoulder, which caught the green gem off guard.

A lot of notes, she recalled, noted how her laugh made Peridot's chest tighten. This, however, became a stronger feeling when it was because she made a joke that Amethyst laughed at. It filled her with joy, and she smiled. Even once Amethyst calmed down and told Steven it was all a joke, that she didn't mean to laugh, that it was a fine show, a perfectly decent show, Peridot smiled at her because she _liked_ staring at this gem with a wonderful laugh. Then Amethyst's attention turned to her.

"What? Is there something on my face?" Amethyst scratched her nose.

Peridot flinched. "Uhh…" she stammered. "Besides your nose, mouth, and eyes?"

Amethyst burst out laughing. "Okay, genius! Not that. Just… your staring at me, and I'm wondering if I've got some leftovers in my teeth." She flashed her teeth to demonstrate.

"No, no. All clear." She gave her a thumbs up.

"Shame, but maybe next time." Amethyst struck her a thumbs up back, despite this letdown, and leaned back. And once the screen went to credits, she stood up and stretched her muscles. "Well, I think that's enough for me tonight. I've got a sleeping bag calling my name." She cupped her hands around her lips and whispered, "Amethyst, Amethyst, please sleep on me."

Steven chuckled. "Okay. I guess I'll head to bed, too. What're you up tonight, Peridot?"

"Well, I do have more… research to do." Peridot crossed her arms. "I have plenty to work out."

"What's got you so worked up nowadays, girl?" Amethyst reached her arms out before straightening herself. "Steven said you've been writing junk like crazy recently. You _sure_ everything's alright in that head of yours?" She tapped Peridot's visor, which made her recoil and hope the touch didn't leave prints.

"It-it's nothing." She cleared her throat. "It's nothing you two need to be concerned with, I assure you. Now if you'll excuse me." She walked away, but watched Amethyst retreat outside with the other gems. And Steven curled into his sleeping bag and shut his eyes.

Peridot scrambled up to her side of the barn, sprawling on the couch as she watched the static. Though she put on the first episode of _Camp Pining Hearts_ , she did not pay attention. It became noise in the background and gave her a strange company. Though every so often, she muttered phrases in the episode without even knowing, but the rest of her time, her mind wandered.

What had happened to drive her to act so unprofessionally, so out of control? She normally knew how she would react, had an air of diplomacy—with a hint of irritation, admittedly—that made her feel like a proper Peridot. Then she started dealing with these Crystal Gems, and she arrived with the Jasper and Lapis to check on the Cluster and see what they were up to. In the end, she found herself trapped and stuck on a planet that was so alien to her and—

 _Wait._ Peridot's eyes grew. She figured it out.

It was this planet's doing! That was the only explanation. She picked up a pen with a bitten top and scribbled angrily onto it. Since arriving here, and being part of the Crystal Gems, she changed so much. Whether for better or worse, that wasn't the question.

"Clearly, there is something toxic in this air that makes me react so ridiculously around Amethyst." When she said the words aloud, it left many questions (such as why Amethyst? Why now?), but it was a start!

She was going to have a word with that Steven!

Then she looked over at his sleeping form, all peaceful and quiet, except for his snoring.

She was going to have a word with him… after he woke up.


	3. Chapter 3

The sun had long since risen. Peridot finished this show Amethyst had recommended her a while back—as she if could refuse this—involving some orange haired child with intelligence far exceeding the humans surrounding him (she sympathized with this character well).

Rubbing her eyes, she slid down the ladder and peeked around for Steven. He was neither down there nor in his section of the barn. With a grunt of frustration, she stomped outside. She needed answers, now.

Upon sighting of the first gem she could find, she approached Pearl, who was at work before a chalkboard. The tall gem drew a detailed, extensive map, which included the Cluster at the bottom.

Peridot glanced around. No one else was around. "Where is everyone?"

"Garnet's out getting lunch for Steven while I'm setting up a path for the drill to the Cluster." She set the chalk down and looked to her side. "And I have no idea where Amethyst ran off to."

Peridot had multiple concerns by her answer, but one stood out among the others. She squinted at the chalkboard, scratching her chin. "Does it really need a path? We have the coordinates."

"It's simply for convenience, so we don't hit any snags by chance. Once we head down there in three days, I want everything to go smoothly and make sure no one is harmed."

"The materials built within it can sustain any simple earth minerals underground. Besides," Peridot added with a grin, "I can direct the drill perfectly fine without it receiving outward damage."

Pearl eyed her. "We didn't clarify who would be riding the drill. It isn't of importance right now."

"Is that implying you decided yourself?" Peridot asked, eyebrows jumping up.

Pearl's cheeks puffed out, but she drew out a long sigh. "We can discuss this later. Is there something you need?"

Peridot straightened herself and remembered what she had come to Pearl for. Though the conversation of who ran the drill would be discussed at a later point, certainly. "I need to see Steven. I was just wondering where he might be."

"He's at the beach up north." She nodded her head in said direction. "His father's visiting, and Steven's probably talking to him about us checking and destroying the Cluster. Why?"

"I need to talk to him."

Pearl's suspicion grew even more visible, as she tilted her head. "Is this something we need to know about?"

Peridot crossed her arms. "As of now, it's none of your business."

"Very well," said Pearl with a grunt, rolling her eyes. "But let Steven know his lunch is coming soon when you see him, will you? Garnet should be back soon, and I'd hate for it to cool off."

"Fine."

With not even a goodbye, Peridot left the barn and headed down to the beach. It was one that was quieter than the part of the beach where the gems usually lived. Likely due to isolation from the rest of the town. In a way, Peridot could understand this.

Upon arrival, she caught two shapes sitting on a log in the sand. To be more specific, one sat atop it, while the larger one sat in front of it, leaning back but also looking up at the smaller one. She slid with wobbling arms down a small hill to see it was, of course, Steven with his father, Greg.

Greg's guitar rested on the ground, forgotten as the two talked. They spoke in whispers, so Peridot couldn't catch it. She knew it was of the Cluster, and their eventual escapade down to it. The privacy of their conversation was clear, especially due to the setting, but Peridot needed answers. And no one likely knew this planet—and it's clear toxins towards gems, her in particular—better than the hybrid and his father. She squeezed her toes in the grains of sand.

Steven's eyes slowly slid toward her, and she froze. "Oh, hey, Peridot!"

Greg turned around, too, and waved. "Hey, there! Do the gems need Steven for something?"

"No, they're fine, although Pearl said that your lunch should be arriving soon, Steven. But that wasn't my main point in coming here."

Father and son exchanged glances before turning back to Peridot. She walked over to the two, standing in front of the log, and cleared her throat as if making a large announcement rather than requesting their help. "I, hm, I need to speak to you, Steven."

"Is something wrong?" The concern showed on his face instantly.

"Actually, yes. I believe something has contaminated me on this planet. Something I haven't faced at any point until recently."

"Oh?" Now it was just confusion.

"Perhaps you have a cold?" Greg offered. "I always have some sort of cold medicine in the trunk of the van, but I'm not sure if it works the same for gems."

"N-no, that's not it!" She crossed her arms, teeth gritted. "Listen, ever since joining you clods, I have been experiencing feelings and emotions that are not normal for gems, especially Peridots. Something far more extreme than I could comprehend. It's getting out of control, and it has something to do with this planet's atmosphere." She paused, then reconsidered. "Well, it's likely the atmosphere, but it could be anything else, really. Just something in the environment."

Greg blinked, as if absorbing all the information given, but then he grinned. Grinned, of all things! "Is it that serious?"

"Yes! Since I've become part of this group, I've been feeling… weird around Amethyst." She started pacing around the sand, the tiny grains flying into the air. She clutched at her chest. "My chest tightens up, and my face flusters more so than when I'm talking with the other gems and you. I tried writing notes down in order to make sense of it, but there's nothing! Just facts! Like when her hair shines when the sun is setting, or how infectious her laughter is, or even, despite the fact that she's not a typical Quartz, that she's amazing and wonderful.. And all these feelings are driving me crazy, and some are just unwelcoming. So I demand answers!" She shut her eyes, almost from relief. All of this stress from the past few days had left her in rage aplenty.

She opened her eyes to a scene she did not anticipate. Steven's eyes enlarged, as did the grin on his face. Both almost took up most of his face (almost being that this was anatomically impossible). Stars danced in his irises.

Greg, meanwhile, brought a hand to his side, also smiling. "Well, I'll be."

"What are those stares for?! This is a serious epidemic!" Peridot cried out, stomping her foot into the sand.

"Oh my gooooosh." Steven ignored her shouts of impatience and clutched his dad's arm, the dreamy look still etched in his features. "I can't believe it."

"That makes two of us, kiddo." The two smiled at one another.

What was happening?! Peridot shook her head. "Isn't there some sort of antidote to cure this?"

"Well, are you sure you want to stop feeling like this?" Greg asked.

"Yes!" As if that wasn't obvious in her distress! Yet Steven was still looking like he wandered into wonderland, teeth showing in his giant grin. Greg's smile was smaller, but still confused her.

"Isn't there a part of you that is, well, happy?"

Yes. She didn't want to tell them that the feeling in her chest made her feel warm and soft, and how sincere those facts about Amethyst were. She had caught Amethyst lounging on the grass outside the barn a few times, but could never bring herself to join her on a whim. Her feet would trap her on their own control. Instead, she'd watch the gem relax under the pink sky and wonder so much about her, like what she was thinking about, how she was feeling, what she was feeling.

Peridot realized she did not answer and looked up at the human, Greg. He gave her a look that proved that he was absolutely Steven's parental figure. The kindness that made her, as if on instinct, talk to him with honesty. "I mean… yes, which is nice. But I don't get it."

"There's not much to get." He chuckled. "Though I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. You shouldn't have to worry so much, though, to be honest—"

"You have a crush on her!" Steven stepped in between his dad and Peridot, hands curled into fists as they shook. They both jumped, but he remained oblivious. Excitement danced in his eyes.

"Aww, c'mon, bud. I was readying a whole speech and everything about how great love is." He shook his head. "Oh, well."

"Love? C-crush?" Her eyes shrank, and she curled away, arms wrapped around her legs. "Something's going to crush me?!"

Steven's face fell for a moment. "No, no! Nothing's coming to crush you. You have a crush on Amethyst!" He smiled again and held her hands. "This is the greatest!"

Still, she didn't follow. "Crush?"

Steven looked away to think. "Uhhh, like with Lacey like liking Abbey—"

"OH MY STARS WHAT?!" Peridot stood up too quick, and her feet swept up underneath her. She fell face flat into the sand. Once she brought her head up, she spat out some sand. "What I'm feeling is the same as those characters."

"Yes! This is amazing, Peridot!"

"It can't possibly be that easy."

"Sure, it can." His tone lowered, and he shrugged.

Peridot groaned. "You're a hybrid who didn't live on Homeworld. You've obviously never been there, either. You don't understand." With a quick moment of pondering, she grabbed Steven's shoulders, and she pleaded with a crack in her voice, "You have to help meeeee."

"With, ah, with what?" Steven scratched at his cheek. "I mean, I don't really know much about love. Not that kind of love anyway. I know it's nice!"

Peridot's eyebrow rose. "But you and Connie—"

"Dad, maybe you can give her advice! Steven's face burned, and a panic stricken look came onto his face. He started laughing awkwardly as he turned back to his dad. He walked from Peridot, covering his face with both hands.

Peridot watched him go with lips pursed.

Greg was just laughing, but patted his son's back. "Sure, kiddo. Go have your lunch."

"Okay, dad." Steven pulled his hands away from his face to hug his dad. "I'll see you."

"You better!"

He also gave a quick goodbye to Peridot before leaving the beach. His flip flops eventually faded away, leaving just Peridot and Greg alone on the beach. She was still standing, but decided on sitting on the log like Steven was. Greg continued occupying the ground in front of it.

There was silence for a bit. Peridot stared at Greg, wondering where to start. The two had not really talked before, and she was well aware that the first time they met wasn't the greatest. Well, she knew now.

"So…" Peridot drew out the word as if to catch his attention. Yet aside from tuning his guitar, his eyes stayed on her. She dug her toes into the sand, feeling the light weight of the grains atop her feet rolling off. "What do I do now?"

Greg smiled. "What do you want to do?"

Peridot wondered of this for a moment, then grimaced. "Scream."

He gave a short laugh. "That's not too far fetched. I recommend not doing that, though. 'Cause it'd probably make the others worry." He pointed behind his shoulder.

"I'm aware." She sat her chin on her knees. "There are plenty of Earth things that baffle me, but this tops it all."

"It does that for people who live here, too."

"So it's common."

"Of course." He picked at his guitar, fixing the tune at the top. His fingers strummed a few of the strings in the center. A light twang littered the air. "Love can be very confusing, and it's different for lots of people. And since you're from Homeworld, I wouldn't be surprised thing are different from there."

"Did Rose Quartz tell you that?"

Greg stared at her for a moment, and Peridot worried for a painstaking moment, that she said the wrong thing. Then he just shrugged. "Rose didn't talk much about Homeworld itself—probably preferred to keep that to herself, which I respect. But from what I know, it doesn't sound like a common thing there. Love, that is."

"It's not," she confirmed.

He made a noise of understanding. "Well, then. Let's see what you can do." He perched his fingers on his chin for a few moments, but then an idea made his face light up. "Perhaps you need something to really catch her attention."

"She pays attention to me a lot," she pointed out.

With a smile, he replied, "Then you're off to a good start. But in order to show her your true feelings, you should try something a little different, probably. You need something that is interesting to both you and her. Something that'll sweep her off her feet—figure of speech," he added at the sight of her weird look.

Peridot thought about that, but her field of skills did not include anything of the romantic variety. That, she was almost certain of. "What would you do?"

"If I liked someone? Well, you could write her a song and sing it to her." He pulled his guitar over and picked at a few strings.

Peridot's eyebrows narrowed. "I don't think that would work for my case… for multiple reasons."

"I know," he chuckled lightly. "But that's just an example. There are plenty of things you can try, whatever works for you."

"I'm assuming that is what you used to attract Rose Quartz's attention."

Greg turned away for a moment, and Peridot thought she had said the wrong thing. Luckily, he looked back up at her. "Yes, I did. And it won her over." He looked proud, picking his head up, eyes shut, but when he opened his eyes, his pride changed into this softer, gentler look. His gaze wandered over to the ocean, and Peridot's followed. Waves pushed forward, and they sounded unlike anything else, like a peaceful attack against the rest of the world. Despite her situation, she appreciated some new things Earth provided.

"I'm glad, too." Greg's voice brought her back. "The second I saw her, I knew I was doomed by love, but I sure don't regret it. Not one bit." His voice softened as his gaze wandered to the sky. To her surprise, he started playing his guitar against, strumming a faint, tranquil melody. Though he spoke in a low, low voice, she just barely caught him saying, "I still miss you."

Peridot noticed his look and realized what it was about. She turned away, wondering if she ever looked at Amethyst like this. Even so, she wasn't sure what to think. Love? Was it really that for her, a lowly Peridot who failed mission after mission? Could she handle something like this? "Doomed? Isn't that terrifying?" Her voice was low.

His dreamy gaze turned back to reality, and he smiled at her. "Not really. It was… pretty awesome." Greg laughed under his breath. "Even if she's not around, she made me feel… special. And because of her, I always have Steven, and that's what counts."

Peridot watched him go on about the gem that apparently made him feel so many things at once. As if she turned his world upside down, and that he didn't regret any of it. So many questions raced through her mind, but how many could this human answer? He gave her several pieces of advice, but something in her couldn't bring herself to so much as imagine herself doing any of it.

"What if…" She hesitated, then bit her lip. "Nevermind."

"Aww, c'mon, Peridot," he said. "We were doing so well. This is the most you've opened up to me. I appreciate it." He gave her a reassuring nod. "Whatever you want to tell me, don't be afraid. None of this leaves this part of the beach, promise."

Peridot couldn't help but smile for a moment, but she refused to look at him. Absorbing everything he said made her face fall. "What if I'm not ready? To, well, do any or that? That's a lot of information to take in, but I'm not quite sure if I'm up to it yet."

He nodded. "Then you don't have to."

"Really?"

Greg leaned back to observe the sky, which swirled with pink from the setting sun. "You don't need to do anything until you find out if you're up for it. Whatever the reason, just take the time you need."

"Time." That seemed to be significant element here. She needed time to adjust to her new surroundings, time to accept that she absolutely betrayed Yellow Diamond and Homeworld, and now she required time to understand these feelings for Amethyst. Her eyes wandered to the sand. "Right."

"Although, if you ever consider that song idea, don't be afraid to ask me for some assistance." He jerked a thumb out, pointing towards himself. "I know a thing or two about love songs."

Peridot, not sure how to respond, just gave him a thumbs up. He grinned and gave her one back. He looked up to the sky, which turned purple by now. Light, thin clouds veiled the rising moon. "Well, looks like it's getting late. Might want head back now. I'll be heading back to the good ol' van."

"Okay." She paused, and as she rose to her feet, she thought about walking away, but stopped. Something crossed her mind, and she walked up in front of him. "I should… also apologize to you." She focused on her fingers, which began to intertwine with one another.

"For what?" Greg gave her a bemused look.

"For, err, pushing you off the the first time we met. I suppose that wasn't a proper first introduction. And I didn't realize at the time it's not customary to do to humans—and probably other creatures, as well."

Greg chuckled. "That is true, but… apology accepted. You didn't know, although at least the other gems weren't that… curious, I suppose. They were, heh, quite a riot, though." He scratched the back of his neck. "Thank you, Peridot. I'm glad you're part of their team now. And, uh, welcome to Earth." His smile was genuine, although a bit awkward.

"Thank you, Greg." She gave him a final nod, but as she began heading to the barn, she had trouble walking forward. Her feet refused to obey, and in fact, were shaking a bit.

"Will you be okay?"

She shot him a look. "Umm…. yes. I just need to get going now. Err, bye!" With that, she ran off and began her return to the barn.

By the time she arrived, no one was around. She wondered how long the conversation with Greg had taken, but decided not to linger on it. There was not much to do by this point, so she headed back into the barn, her head rushing with so much. All that happened, all that was talked about… it was almost overwhelming, even for a Peridot.

What was she to do now? Yes, Greg suggested to take another step and try to impress Amethyst or show her how much she cared, but where to begin? Did she want to begin? Anything could go wrong.

She arrived to her part of the barn where the television rested and remembered something. She rushed over to Steven's room and looked at his television, the one the gems brought to keep Steven occupied on carefree days. This one, unlike one that was clearly a far older model, had more than one show and didn't require tapes.

"Maybe these will help. There's hundreds of programs, according to Steven, so maybe one of them can give me an idea or answer."

Steven wasn't wrong. Multiple channels covered this small television. From shows all about food, about playing with and throwing small spheres, and there was one cartoon with a robot with a crude sense of humor who loved annoying his human friends, which was amusing at least.

She stopped at a movie that involved two female humans discussing something at a shop in a busy town. One was deeply emotional over something, which was revealed that her mother forbade her from seeing the other girl. The other girl, with tattoos painted across her arms, held her hands and told her it would be okay, that they'd work it out.

At most, it was intense when the girl, named Olivia, was caught by her mother, who forced her to stay in the house for an extended period of time and not talk to the other girl, named Francis.

"At least you're not threatened to be shattered." Peridot's voice cracked. But she stayed on the movie, curiosity beating her from changing the channel. Maybe this was the worst thing on planet Earth, but pieces of crumbled gems entered her mind and made her curl her hands into tight, tight fists.

The movie ended with the two girls running off into the forest, hands held and fingers interlocked. At the edge of the forest, they stopped at an opening that revealed a vast opening of green flora that seemed to go on forever. Happy music swirled through the air like flower petals, and the girls smiled at one another, no more problems weighing on their shoulders. Like it was no problem.

"Oh, forget this!" Peridot growled and turned the television off. She grumbled all the way back to her television, the one with good programming. Dang it, maybe in the third season, Percy and Pierre would be on the same capture the flag team.

The doors creaked open, and all one of the gems entered the barn, with Steven trailing not to far behind with his hands on his tummy.

"That place was a pigsty," Pearl stated, hands clasped together in front of her.

"My kinda place," Amethyst commented, snickering.

Pearl rolled her eyes, but she was smiling. "Once we're done with the Cluster, we can all move back to the Temple. Quite frankly, I miss being there a bit."

"You went to the Temple?" Peridot asked, poking her head out from the bottom floor.

The gems turned to her. "Yes, but it was just the three of us. Garnet went out on her own for a bit. She should be back soon," Pearl informed her. Then she brought out a handkerchief and rubbed it against her hands. "I wanted to clean out the Temple, since we haven't been there in a while. Good thing, too. Dusty corners." She peered up at Peridot. "Though I expected you to come back with Steven, but he said you were talking to Greg about… stuff." Her brow quirked.

Peridot cringed. At least Steven didn't go into great detail. "Like I told you, none of your business."

Pearl shrugged and guided Steven to his bed. It was only then she realized how late it got, with the moon glowing outside.

"Yo, homegirl!" Amethyst walked over to her. She paused, and Peridot noticed she carried herself in a sort of confident way and smiled, but Amethyst continued, "Cause you're from Homeworld? Get it?" She pointed her fingers at Peridot.

"But aren't the other three… I mean, two, from Homeworld, as well?"

Amethyst rolled her eyes. "Yeah, okay, you got me there. I think I've called you that before, too, but didn't even realize the joke. Aheh. Thought I'd give it another whirl." She spun a finger in the air.

"No, I like it." She smiled, then glanced at the television. "I tried watching other programs, but they didn't impress me."

"The horrors of television: all those channels, but nothing to watch!" She gave a long, drawn out sigh, but she smirked. "I kinda figured it'd happen when they started doing shows about utensils."

"Right?" Peridot agreed with far more enthusiasm than she planned.

"Can I join you?"

"Uhh, sure." She hoped her hesitance didn't come across as her not wanting Amethyst's company.

This didn't seem to be the case, as the Quartz jumped up onto the next floor with a snazzy flourish. Amethyst stared at the television for a moment, and Peridot expected her to make a remark about the show she constantly watched.

Instead, Amethyst flopped onto the ground, but just as Peridot expected her to occupy the space next to her, Amethyst caught her by surprise once more. Though she did sit beside her, she then lowered herself and placed her head onto Peridot's lap. Peridot's face burned.

"Wh-what are you doing?"

"Uhh, what does it look like?" Her head moved to look up at Peridot.

Peridot's jaw fell slack. She replied like it was obvious, only it wasn't! Peridot, however, chose to play along. "You're resting your head on my lap."

Amethyst shrugged. Yeah, I'm also watching your show with you."

"You don't even like it, though." Peridot's suspicion continued to grow, and her blushing thickened.

"Well, I dunno. You like it. Plus, me and Steven showed you that anime, so I thought I thought I'd watch your stuff in exchange."

"A quid pro quo of sorts." Peridot hummed in thought. "I can understand that."

Amethyst looked at her, lips straightening. "I could move if it's that—"

"No, no!" Peridot objected, making Amethyst blink in surprise. She tried a casual grin. "It's fine. Just… was surprised, I guess."

"Rule one for planet earth, P-girl: expect the unexpected." Amethyst's finger pointed out, first into the air, then at her.

Peridot grimaced, eyebrows slit downward. "How can I expect something if I can't expect it."

"Exactly," Amethyst whispered in a deep voice.

Peridot was sure her eye twitched a bit. As if noticing this, Amethyst snickering. She waved her hand and said, "Alright, alright, let's watch your campy show—heh, now I see why it's at a camp. I'm on a roll tonight."

Peridot just squinted at her. Amethyst was unamused.

"We need to teach you about puns, girl." Amethyst rolled her eyes. "Pearl can't stand them when I do them, so I need more gems in my pun army."

"Do I need to learn how to wield weapons?"

Amethyst fired finger guns at her. "Only good jokes. As in not a real army, silly. Ahh, someday." With a loud sigh, she looked back at the television and started kicking her feet. "So that's Percy and Pierre, right? I think Steven said you ship them real bad. Like a crazy teenage girl."

"What's a ship?" Her eyebrow quirked.

"It's what you do with those two." Amethyst gestured at the screen. "You totally think they're cute together, and you want them to be together and everything. And some have ship names, I guess, where you mash their names together, but they sound kinda dumb sometimes."

Peridot nodded. ... Don't think about what our ship name would be, DON'T.

"So you're totally into Percy and Pierre, I guess, but are there any other characters you like?"

Amethyst's voice brought her back from her inner thoughts. "Oh, sure, but Paulette's the worst." Peridot's tone grew bitter just saying her name. She rolled her eyes. "She thinks she's sooo special and the absolute best, because she's the group's captain, but she's really not all that great." With one look at the screen, a boy with dark hair appeared on the screen alone, and she added, "Oh, but Peeta's also a top quality character. He's someone who moved into Camp Pining Hearts from another camp called Camp Wretched Heart."

Amethyst snorted. "Geez, really? Sounds rough."

"It was for him. But he manages by doing what he's best at, and that's leading the group he's assigned to. Look, see!" She pointed at the screen, in which Paulette looked to be in great upset while Peeta holds out a large map. "She got the group lost, but he's the one who's going to get them out."

"Go, Peeta." Amethyst didn't sound too enthused, but Peridot smiled again.

It was then that she caught Amethyst staring at her. Her eyes squinted, like she was trying to look at something but struggled to do so. Peridot didn't know what to think of it.

"You're looking at me funny."

Amethyst didn't answer for a good minute, and Peridot began to open her mouth to repeat what she said. But Amethyst beat her to it. "We're here for you, you know, right?" she said in a somber tone.

Peridot stared at her back, mouth falling open for a minute but with no words coming out. "Um… yes?" She finally got out, only she didn't. She didn't get it.

"Just… you know." Amethyst turned away, her hair flipping over her face and shielding her from Peridot's gaze. "We-they all care. Even if they don't show it."

"Even Pearl?" Peridot's voice cracked, also raising with doubt.

"Sure." Amethyst nodded. "So does Garnet, Steven, obviously…" There was some hesitated, and then she glanced back up. "Me."

Peridot's heart pounded. She struggled to speak. "Well… good," she was able to muster. She waited for Amethyst to continued, but based on her silence thereafter, there seemed to be no furthering of the conversation. They simply looked at one another, not saying a word. Peridot, for once, broke the ice. "Amethyst?"

"Wassup?" It was in a whisper. Her eyes shined. Did she knew they shined, even in the dark? Should she tell her? No, it was probably obvious. There were other things she could talk about, but did she genuinely want to?

"You… or we, well… err." She stammered, even rubbed the side of her neck. The words refused to come out, and a grave reminder that she reallywas a failure on multiple levels. Not even able to discuss these feelings to the very person that caused them. She hid this disappointment with an awkward smile. "Thank you for watching my show with me."

Amethyst blinked, and her facial expression shifted. Her eyes relaxed. "No need to thank me. I'm just that awesome." She smirked.

"Well, yes. And it means a lot to me that you spend time with me."

"Uh, really?" Amethyst's voice lowered, smirk falling away.

"Yes." She nodded. "Is it that shocking?

"A…" Her smile returned, only one more genuine. "A little, I guess. No big deal, but, yeah, thanks. Plus." Seeing you geek out is cute as hell." Amethyst laughed. "That's more fun than the show, but I'll still watch. Kinda. Sorta." Her hand shook in the air.

Peridot beamed. "I'll take it."

The next episode rolled, and the two mostly commented over the episode. Peridot reminded herself to watch it later, because she barely heard much of what was actually happening. She didn't have it in her to stop talking to Amethyst, though.

It was just so easy, far easier to get a conversation out of her.

The conversations lessened, however, once the next episode was near its end. Peridot worried Amethyst was getting bored, and thought of offering one of Amethyst's shows for them to watch. A lot of them involved male humans punching each other and slamming into one another. Peridot saw enough of that when seeing Quartz train. When she looked down, however, she realized why it got a lot quieter.

Amethyst's eyes were shut, and she had fallen asleep. Head still resting in her lap while directed at the television.

Peridot grumbled to herself about how her legs were stuck, how she could not move around and that the episode was on its credits. Her voice did not raise above anything more than an irritated whisper, however, due to Amethyst's sleeping status. She snored quite a bit, but this did not come as a surprise to Peridot.

With a sigh, she looked up at the screen. The credits rolled, so she had to wait for endless mentions of insignificant names for the next episode to start. Another sigh, and she glanced down at Amethyst.

She looked so peaceful in her sleep. Despite her snoring, and part of her face being concealed by hair, she appeared content. Steven once called Peridot that humans dream in their sleep, projections of images that created scenes while you went into a REM cycle. Peridot wondered, for a moment, what Amethyst was dreaming of.

Tilting her head, with curiosity burning, Peridot brushed her hair aside, revealing a pair of shut eyes. It came to her that Amethyst often hid away her eyes, and she wondered if it ever bothered her. She had great eyes to look at after all, so why conceal one of them?

Even when not trying, she looked amazing. Wonderful. Perfect. Words that came into Peridot's head without much thought, words that she had probably heard before but never thought to use. They came with ease by looking at her.

The tape restarted itself onto the same episode, but the voices faded into the background.

She found herself brushing strands of her light, light purple hair. Her fingers curled into the strands, and despite its messy appearance they stroked through her hair with ease. The texture was soft.

Amethyst's head tilted, making Peridot stop, fingers freezing midair. Did she wake up?

Instead of that, Amethyst's side of her head brushed against Peridot's stomach. Peridot blushed heavily at the contact. It didn't last long before Amethyst stilled again.

To think, Amethyst wasn't even awake, and yet she made Peridot flustered! The smile on her face, however, showed that what Peridot was doing clearly made her happy, even though she likely was not aware.

She continued brushing through her hair, with her emotions calming down. A warm smile graced her face while glancing down.

With a blink, she caught herself. Her fingers playing with Amethyst's hair, how comfortable she sat with Amethyst sleeping on her, her gaze lingering on the sleeping Quartz. Her fingers stopped playing and simply rested atop her mane of pale, pale purple.

"I'm doomed."


	4. Chapter 4

I remember when I first wrote this as a one-shot and said, "Nothing much happens here." What lies!

FOUR

When Peridot opened her yes, confusion rushed through her. Several thoughts came to her at once, and she needed time to compose herself as well as her thoughts.

First off, she had not even realized she had shut her eyes previously. She knew of sleep, but never got around to do it herself... until now, clearly. It was not in her control, which brought most of the shock, but she would think over it later, if need be. She rubbed an eye before further observing to brush off the flakes of sleep in her eyes.

It took another second to notice that her position on the floor had changed while she slept. Something held her around the waist, but with little to no force in its grip, and something soft pillowed her head as opposed to a hardwood floor. And finally...

Peridot was staring at a sleeping Amethyst, resting just inches from her face. Purple eyelids shut over large eyes, and full purple lips pursed out.

Besides feeling her face burn, Amethyst's breath washed over her face. Her voice almost croaked out a help but she stopped herself. Her mind began to race as she tried to figure out what to do.

Their bodies just barely pressed against one another, a soft brush of flesh against flesh, so if she attempted to slip away, Peridot would likely wake Amethyst, disturbing her sleep. Peridot shot a look at Amethyst, whose features relaxed and smoothed while she nodded off, looking small and soft and precious and Peridot simply did not want to ruin that. Biting her lip, her gaze remained on her sleeping companion, wondering how they'd gotten into this position in the first place.

A noise to her right pulled her attention away. To her side, Steven wore a giant, excited smirk. He giggled behind his hand, like he was trying to conceal it and failing miserably. Knowing she had revealed aplenty the previous day, she blushed deeper and probably all over, if such were possible.

She bared her teeth and hissed at him. Steven's face fell, and he blinked. He started backing away, but Peridot heard him laughing once more before he slid down the ladder and exited the barn. She pinched the edge of her nose.

It took a minute before being unable to move became an annoyance, so she began her tactical retreat from the arms of Amethyst. She wiggled away from her friend's grasp, and the Quartz's hands fell to the ground once they were no longer wrapped around Peridot's middle. Peridot backed away on her butt, but began getting to her knees. It was then that Amethyst's eyes fluttered open.

Peridot froze. Amethyst blinked several times before rising from her resting position and stretching her limbs. Through grunts, she said, "Sup?"

Peridot wondered if she was blushing? Oh stars, she hoped not. "S-sup." Her reaction was awkward, which only made her feel worse.

Amethyst grinned as she stretched one arm while the other wrapped around the first arm's elbow. "So, you fell asleep, huh?"

"What?" Peridot's voice broke. "How did—"

"I woke up for a midnight snack." Amethyst shrugged, but then a dangerous glint flashed in her eyes. "You totally snore, by the way."

"Well, so do you!" Peridot responded defensively through narrowed brows. As of the previous night, she knew this all too well, much to her irritation. Yet this did not bother her from falling asleep herself...

"That, I do." Amethyst chuckled, bearing a grin that glowed with confidence.

"But yours are a lot... softer. Not gonna lie, it was kinda cute. But hey." She lay back against the mattress that was left unused that night. "How was it? Any cool dreams?"

The "cute" compliment threw her off guard, but rather than once again get defensive because being called cute was downright cruel, she shrugged it off while answering the question. "I don't really remember anything. It sort of... just happened. I haven't slept before, and therefore, definitely haven't had dreams, either."

"Dang. Shame." Amethyst dug her teeth between her fingernails. "Dreams are the best. One time, I had a dream that I was riding on top a giant dumpster across the ocean, and I'm pretty sure I made friends with these rad dolphins. It was pretty cool."

Peridot must've worn a weird look, because Amethyst laughed again. "It's better than it sounds, trust me. Dreams are like that. So..." she began as she stood up and walked over to the edge of the floor they were on. Peridot followed and watched her jump to the bottom floor, grunting but still gaining a nice landing. "What'cha up to today?"

Peridot hummed in pondering. "Today, I want to check on the progress of the magnitude the cluster might be giving off. We need to calculate its likely hatching time based on the progress of its stirring—"

Amethyst just blew a raspberry to cut her off. "Aww, c'mon. Forget that junk for today. We should go out! And get down here already, would ya?"

Peridot hesitated at the edge.

"If you're worried, I'll catch ya; no worries. You are tiny enough for me to do that."

Peridot's cheeks burned again, but not out of embarrassment. But all that did was win a laugh from Amethyst. She jumped from the edge and landed square on her feet—mostly. She wobbled, but then stood firm.

The question Amethyst asked, however, still lingered. "Go out where?"

Amethyst rolled her shoulders. "I dunno. Hey!" Her hands curled into fists in front of her. "Let's head to Beach City!"

"Hey, guys!"

Peridot glared at Steven, despite him beaming that giant Steven grin of his. The one that made Peridot, for some reason, want to squish his cheeks, but everything within her fought against it.

"Where did you guys say you were going?" he asked.

"Probably to Beach City," Peridot answered, crossing her arms in her usual, casual manner. Her eyes glinted at Peridot. "If I can get Peri-craze to go, of course. You know, get her away from the Cluster stuff for a bit."

"I've had plenty of time to 'get away' from the Cluster stuff. I'd rather get to it so the Cluster does not get to us," Peridot argued, using air quotes against her repetition of Amethyst's words, which she spoke with a hint of acid dripping out. She turned away, arms folded. "Can't that stupid town wait?"

"I mean, has the Cluster made any movement?" Amethyst asked. "Like, any huge ones?"

Peridot blinked. "Uh, no. Nothing massive. Even according to the readings I managed to get from censors from my ship, they were in small pieces at a time. But still! Small movements all add up to big things! As in destruction and kabloo-ey!" Peridot stretched out her arms as she said the last word, though the exaggerated gesture maybe was something to hide her shaking.

She would have gone on for another minute or maybe ten, but she was interrupted not by words, but rather a hand on her shoulder. A thick one against her thin shoulders. Her eyes drifted up to see Amethyst, her eyes half-lidded.

"Look, we'll be fine. You've worked real hard the past few days, so you know, a few days to yourself can't hurt. You earned it, Wondernerd." She spoke in a low tone, one of those serious ones that came to Amethyst in small chunks and made Peridot lose her breath for just a moment. They left shortly, however, like this one as she poked Peridot's other shoulder lightly. "Get what I'm sayin'?"

Peridot nodded with only a small hint of honesty.

Production was key on Homeworld. Work on one thing, move onto the next. Designing a new device, progress on another creation, and keeping up the quality on the still stable projects. "Days off" did not arrive in many forms where she worked.

Then Steven piped up. "You know, we can introduce you to a few people in town. Now that you're good now, maybe you can start meeting other humans—besides my dad, of course." Steven put up an index finger, followed by his middle finger, and he squinted. "And, uh, you kinda met Connie, but... not really. Buut she'll be at the cookout tonight, so there's that."

Suddenly and if only for this moment, interacting with other humans and pushing back work on the Cluster were pushed to the back of her mind. "Cookout?"

"Oh, yeah, I forgot to bring it up yesterday. My bad." Though she apologized, she definitely did not sound like she meant it. She shrugged. "Steven wanted us all back at the temple to have food tonight outside. But first, we're taking you to see all there is to Beach City. As in… mostly just weird people," she finished and added an abrupt chuckle.

"Do I have to talk to them?" Peridot asked, her voice in no way concealing her dread of the concept. Humans were far too unpredictable for her to handle in large clumps.

"That is part of meeting them," Amethyst answered, her body leaning toward Peridot a touch. "Think you can handle that?"

Peridot resisted rolling her eyes as well as downright rejecting the very idea. She could only imagine herself, however, staying while the two left elsewhere, possibly to Beach City, while she checked on the growing strength of the Cluster. A wasted opportunity to hang out with Steven and Amethyst… she groaned, "Ugh… I'll try."

"To Beach City!" Steven pumped out an energetic fist.

"Beach City!" Amethyst repeated, voice grave and loud in Peridot's hearing.

Peridot caught Amethyst's side glance at her. Then another nudge, and waggling eyebrows. Her own narrowed.

"I'm not saying it!" Peridot objecting again, but this time through shut eyes and with clenched fists at her sides.

A warp and a long walk from the beach later, they arrived at Beach city? It was quiet and not very active, like Peridot expected. A few humans passed by, and Peridot noticed how they did not seem to react heavily by the appearance of herself and Amethyst. As if it was, dare she say, normal.

"Do they know what we are?" Peridot asked through clenched teeth.

"Yup!" Steven nodded, but then his fingers splayed on his chin. "Well, I don't think they know you're one of the gems that invaded the city on the giant hand ship, which made everyone evacuate and feel terrified."

"Probably wanna skip mentioning that, then, I guess," said Amethyst.

"Ayy, Steven!"

The three turned to the side to see three humans standing at a boardwalk in front of a large sign that read "FUNLAND" in thick letters.

Jenny waved with a wide smile. "What's up, little guy?"

"Just walking around the pier and showing my new friend Beach City." Steven gestured over to Peridot, who stood firm at the appearance of the trio of humans standing over her. "This is Peridot, and Peridot, this is Jenny, Sour Cream, and Buck." He gestured respectively to the dark skinned human with golden pieces stuck to her ears, the palest one with his hands thrust in his pockets, and finally the human wearing dark shades.

"Hello," Peridot said stiffly.

The three gave her various responses, from a loud one from the female ("Heya!"), to the strangely calm human ("What's up?") and finally the slow voice of the tallest one ("How's it, uhh, goin'?"). They all spoke at once

"How you liking it here so far?" Jenny asked, hands firm on her hips.

The three humans looked down at her with curious expressions—well, at least she was certain of the one wearing shades to conceal his vision spheres. Peridot blinked, having no idea this was her cue to comment. On... what? She glanced around the pier. Then at the sign.

"It, uh, looks... fun?" she commented lamely.

"That's what we're here for," Sour Cream said.

"We were going to Funland. See some games, just chill. The atmosphere here is very 'lax." Buck pushed on his shades with a single finger. "We all need a break from reality, after all, every once in a while."

Amethyst nodded at this, then side-glanced Peridot. Peridot noticed this but did not say anything of it.

"All too true, especially after a long shift at work," Jenny said, turning up to the sky with a disgusted look. She clicked her tongue. "Why doesn't daddy get that Kiki's the hard worker, not me? Give her all the eight hour shifts! So you guys!" With a loud clap, she caught all their attention firmly. "You wanna join us?"

"We don't exactly have money this second," Amethyst said, spreading out her palms as if to demonstrate.

Buck gave a light, monotone scoff. "Money isn't the key to happiness—"

"Unless it's to play games." Sour Cream pointed a finger.

"True that. But we could lend some cash, no prob. 'Least we can do for you guys for, you know, making sure this place didn't blow up or something."

Peridot kept her mouth shut about that.

"Exactly!" Jenny exclaimed. "Think of it as a thanks, in a way. A thanks in kiddy games and junk food."

"You know us too well." Amethyst grinned.

Steven stepped forward. "You guys are awesome! Where do you wanna start?"

Peridot thought she could not possibly match the enthusiasm of anyone in the group, including the new additions to it. Though they did not express their excitement like a clearly younger Steven did, they did not shy away from joining in the games and going on the rides.

At one point, Amethyst grabbed her and convinced her into a ride filled with vehicles connected to rods. They got in separate cars and waited until all the other humans sat in their cars. Steven, Jenny, and Buck jumped in, as well, but Sour Cream stayed behind for the ride, saying he was upset that these cars did not have seat belts. When noises reverberated, signaling the start of the ride, Peridot's eyes immediately fell toward Amethyst.

Peridot nearly jumped out of her seat. Amethyst stuck her tongue out, a sign that this was serious business, but also not completely. Still, she drove toward Peridot, and the green gem went stiff and failed to move away.

Impact came, and the whole car shook as it was rammed by Amethyst's car. "Gyahhh!"

"Get wrecked, P-Snot!" Amethyst cackled manically.

"Oh, it's on!" Peridot challenged, flustered. Then she gripped at the wheel in front of her, then looked down and back up. "How do you work this thing?"

Amethyst laughed again, but more genuinely. "Just turn it and press the pedal! It's not that hard!"

Peridot turned left, and in turn, the car whirred left once she pressed the pedal. She moved left, and once she recognized how the machine worked, she eyed Amethyst. Their gazes met, and they both were likely thinking the same thing.

Bring it.

The five minutes left of the ride consisted of hit after hit, shaking car after shaking car. Peridot's hair began to frizz as their competition continued, and the other riders were forgotten—except for one kid who accidentally ran into Peridot, and suddenly, they decided on a truce to go after the young human who had no idea what he got himself into. Soon, the competition melted and was replaced with just them laughing as they rode around, attacking other riders—even Steven, though he laughed along with them as opposed to the kid who looked somewhat terrified of the two gems.

The two were laughing once the cars stopped, and the whirring grew silent. They exited their cars and met with one another along with the others.

"That was fun!" Amethyst commented, slinging her arm around Peridot's shoulder as they stepped down from the ride. The others followed behind, commenting on what ride to go onto next and how many they could do before the sun set.

As the day grew late, Steven finished the last bite of a salted pretzel in one of his hands. He had a small alligator in his other hand from a game that involved popping balloons. Peridot commented on its simplicity, which made the vendor shoot her a glare, but it got the others laughing amongst themselves, so that was not Peridot's problem.

The two male humans were talking to Steven about his dad's guitar lessons, while Jenny slid over to Amethyst's and Peridot's sides.

"So been here long, new girl?" she asked, popping her bubble gum after she finished.

"This is my first time in this town. But I've been on Earth for... a little while, I guess. A few months, at most. I lost track."

"How you liking it here, then?"

Peridot just shrugged, and she shied away.

She couldn't say anything. Not to Amethyst and this girl who had some similarities to Amethyst that were left unnoticed. Those who lived here and had plenty to care for on it.

"She's still getting used to it, ya know?" Amethyst answered for her, and Peridot silently thanked her for it. "New place, new home, if you know what I mean."

Home.

Whatever that was.

Jenny hummed. "I see what'chu mean. If I left home, I bet I'd be pretty weird about it. Hah! Don't tell daddy or Kiki that. They'll never let me hear the end of it." She pointed to the two of them.

Amethyst pointed back. "Tell them what?"

Jenny laughed. "Oh, you guys are the best. Please never change, kay?"

Peridot had fallen silent and preferred to stay that way. The topic change had suddenly made her lose the energy that soared through her after the fun ride with everyone. She peered at them through the corner of her eyes to see Amethyst staring at her for a moment before the others caught up to them.

"So you guys ready to head out? It's getting late, and I need to listen to my late night jams," Sour Cream said, shoving his hands into his pockets.

The others nodded in agreement, and Steven even said, "Yeah, we do have other stuff to do." However, Amethyst didn't respond for a moment. She looked away.

Then she said, "Actually, lemme try one more thing before we get out of here." She walked backwards before twirling around to a stretch of small tents that held basic carnival games that involved balls or water shooters. Given the rush of the bumper cars, Peridot couldn't help but take a little breather. She and the others followed Amethyst to one where a tall man wearing a beanie as well as a few piercings in one ear stood.

Amethyst rested her lower arm on the table, one eyebrow jumping up. "So, running a bottle stand today, are we, Sean?"

"You betcha," said the tall human in a tone that equally matched Amethyst's sarcastic one with ease. He quirked a brow back and gestured behind him. "Just knock all three bottles off the stand in one throw and you're good to go."

"Pft!" Amethyst scoffed with carefree dismissal. Her grin widened. "Might as well give me that cute cat over there right now."

Peridot followed Amethyst's pointed finger to a purple stuffed cat from the wall beside various other animals that inhabited Earth but certainly not Homeworld. The cat had a bored expression on its face, as if wishing it were any other day but this one.

"Well," Sean snorted, "looks like it was practically made for you."

"It's callin' for me, baby." Amethyst slapped a dollar bill from Jenny on the counter and turned around, her hair swirling in the wind for a moment. Her elbow smacked onto the table, palm opened in a gesture to gain something. "Let's start."

When she received the ball, Amethyst didn't even turn around. She tossed it over her shoulder with enough force that it still made contact the three bottles. She peeked over her shoulder to see the bottles crumble. Her relaxed face fell when only one fell off the wooden stand.

Sean chuckled. "Gonna have to do better than that. I worked real hard on the bottles this time. And they all have to fall off the stand, you know."

Amethyst rolled her eyes. "Oh, geez. Fine. Gimme the second one."

Sean continued smiling as he gave her the second ball. This time, she kept her body facing toward the game and took a few moments to lock onto the target. Peridot realized she was doing that adorable thing again, where she stuck her tongue out in concentration.

With a second and far more composed toss, the bottles all recoiled back from the impact and dropped onto the hardwood ground, clattering noises filling the air as well as Amethyst's cheers.

"Alright!" Amethyst thrusted her elbow back in a cheer. Her smirk was slick as she shot it at Sean, and gestured at the cat plush with a waggling finger. "Now bring the kitty home."

Sean rolled his eyes with a tiny grin as he reached up to grab the stuffed cat and handed it to her. She threw it in the air once before tucking it to her side.

"Okay, now I have to try! I have three bucks left," said Jenny, stepping forward and waving the bills in her hand.

Jenny took her turn, but Amethyst walked over to Peridot. The others watched Jenny toss the ball, while the two gems stood right behind them and not really paying attention to the humans. Amethyst wore a softer smile, one not really filled with all that confidence she donned like clothing. Peridot opened her mouth to ask what in the world she was doing or if she was going to do anything, when Amethyst shot her arms forward, right at Peridot, who barely flinched. She was still holding the plush cat.

"Surprise! All yours!"

Peridot took in Amethyst's outstretched arms, her words, the excitement dancing in her eyes, and the silly cat dangling from her plump fingers. There was a meaning here, but… "What?"

Amethyst snickered through a wide smile. "Geez, do I have to say it? I won it for you, duh! Now take it before my arms get tired from holding it."

She took it... slowly. And based on the electricity that coursed through her fingers, her hand touched Amethyst's in the process of taking it. Amethyst let go as Peridot gripped at the cat's stomach.

Her voice caught in her throat. A gift... from Amethyst. She turned it around to meet its bored countenance. Sharp teeth stuck out at the edges of its straightly lined mouth. Underneath her appendages, it had a fuzzy body, covered head to toes in purple, faux fur. She would've one on forever and forever looking into every detail of this because it suddenly hit her how this made her body feel warm and wonderful and it was because of Amethyst, of course, but when was this not the case lately?

"Yo, Peri, you alright?" A voice mixed with confusion and concern made her look up.

With one look at Amethyst's bemused look, a thought struck her. She glanced back at her now occupied hands and then at Amethyst's empty ones. Her glance fell over to the giant plush creature dangling from the walls of the bottle stand. The monkey with a wide smile, the orange whale, the kitten with its tongue sticking out. Peridot turned her body toward the game.

"I want to try."

Amethyst's lips pursed out, but she did not respond otherwise.

Steven gasped, and the three teenagers turned around. "You're gonna try it?"

"Go for it, alien girl," Buck cheered in a not at all encouraging voice, but a little smile pulled at the corners of his lips.

"I will!" Peridot marched forward with pride, but decided on a delicate landing for the cat plush upon placing it on the counter.

"You need money, sweetheart." Sean rolled his eyes.

Her confidence pose nearly fell apart, and her shoulders slouched until Steven tapped a one dollar bill on the table. Sean placed it in the silver box before handing her two white balls.

She thought of Amethyst's movements and the way she threw her shot. Peridot even stuck out her tongue, as if it would give her Amethyst's strength. Despite her intelligence, Peridot failed in the strength department.

When she threw the first ball...

It fell to the ground halfway, bouncing and even hitting the converses of Sean.

Sean sniggered under his hand, and even as he put his hand down, he was biting his lip. "Got another try, little one. Maybe you can actually hit the bottles this time." His tone dripped with cruel tease.

Buck's eyebrows shot down ever so slightly. "Respect for little green, man."

"You can do it, Peridot!" Steven cheered.

"C'mon, Peridot, you got this!" Amethyst called from between her hands.

Among the nicknames Amethyst gave her, whenever she said her actual name, it sent that rush through her body that felt like shivers and probably were shivers but not the typical kind from feeling the cold. As if inspired by the name, her grip tightened on the second and final ball, and she fixed her gaze on the bottles.

There was one perfect way to make them all fall to the ground in one fell swoop. Directly in the center, but she had to set the coordinates properly. While she did not have her screen, the angles came into her mind, as well as where the ball needed to be thrown and the amount of strength thrown to hit the bottles and make them tumble to the ground.

"Today, ma'am," Sean deadpanned.

Amethyst shot him a look—Peridot caught this from the edges of her vision—and Sean recoiled a few steps back.

With a throw and feeling this new stream of determination, she threw through the air with far much more vigor than previously, and it actually headed toward the bottles. It collided directly in the center of the three bottles, and they all scattered into the air for a few moments before landing on the wooden tables on their sides, dangling from the edges. One fell.

Everyone waited.

Two seconds passed.

The last two cascaded and rattled onto the wooden pier floorboard.

"Woohoo! She got it!" Jenny cried out.

"Do they have these games on your alien world?" Sour Cream asked, with a small drip of amazement slipping out—just a little.

Once Peridot pointed out the stuffed animal she desired, Peridot's eyebrow shot up at him. "Of course not. This just wasn't that difficult. Once you calculate the perfect targeting point where all three get hit with enough power to fall off the platform, it's nothing. "

Amethyst gave her a grin, crossing her arms. "Sweet."

"Math is pretty cool like that," said Buck with an affirmative nod.

Amethyst shook her head. Peridot's awkward smile returned once their gazes met again. With a glance down, she realized something and fumbled with her next words. "Er, oh, right! Almost forget. This... is... for you."

Amethyst's lips popped out in surprise. Her eyes kept looking between the soft looking, brown and black kitten and Peridot. When she took the stuffed animal, her eyes locked back on Peridot, and she chuckled shortly. "Th-thanks. It's super cute. And hey, look, we match." She gestured between her prize and Peridot's prize.

Peridot's awkward smile remained. Did she do that intentionally? It just stuck out more than the rest.

"It's cute, though! I'll be sure to put it somewhere where I won't lose it or forget it. You know, big room and all." She shrugged and looked away. "I'm sure I'll find a place."

Then Amethyst leaned in, and Peridot's breath caught in her throat. In a whisper, Amethyst said through half-lidded eyes, "But for real, thanks. It's stupid cute."

Peridot just stared.

Jenny appeared by her side and knelt down. "We gotta take a pic with all of us with our new prizes... like mine! Check it!" Jenny held her phone in one hand, while showing her prize of a panda with giant eyes. "Just the cutest, isn't it?! C'mon, guys!"

The six all gathered into the small range of the phone's camera, which proved to be difficult once they all tried to show off their prizes from the day. Jenny took her time arranging, saying she only wanted the best picture ("Or five. However many we need.")

"We should be getting back soon, anyway," Steven said. "After all, there's that cookout, and I think Connie will be here soon and—"

"IS THAT ANOTHER GEM!?"

Steven's face morphed away from excitement and tilted more toward a blank slate, and Peridot caught Amethyst grimacing and groaning beside her. The group stepped apart from the picture.

"I'LL NEVER GET A BREAK, WILL I?!"

"Oh, boy." Jenny's hand pressed against her face, and she smirked. "Better get running, Peri-gurl. Ronaldo loves his little conspiracy theories. Especially involving all that gem stuff."

"What?" Peridot wasn't sure she heard that correctly.

"No questions," said Buck. "Just be free, little ones."

Amethyst took Peridot's wrist to drag her away from the Cool Kids, and Steven did not need any sort of guidance to walk away. The trio called goodbye to the teenagers, who waved and called out goodbye in return. Over her shoulder, Peridot saw another human run toward the teenagers. He stopped beside them, panting and resting his hands on his knees, but they had long since run too far off for her to hear their conversation.

"Gem conspiracies?!" Peridot shrieked.

"Best not ask about it. He's a little weird," Amethyst teased, using her free hand—once she released Peridot which made the warmth on her wrist lessen—to swirl her one finger in a circle on the side of her face.

"He's just curious," Steven said, tossing her a quick shrug, but he did not seem to hesitate in running off from the man, as well.

"HOW MUCH DOES THAT RANDOM HUMAN KNOW?!" Peridot shrieked, but her question was left in the dark as they walked around a block and lost the view of the teens and apparent conspirator.

"Peri-gurl?" Amethyst snorted, slowing down their pacing to a simple walk. "That wasn't even clever. She wishes."

There was a pause, and Peridot noticed the sky glowing a soft purple. Twilight was among them. The whole day spent at the small town. Peridot gazed down.

"This still felt like such a waste of time," Peridot admitted, clutching the stuffed cat tighter against her chest.

Amethyst laughed. "I know, isn't it great?"

Peridot looked at the gravel they were walking on, then back at her and Steven. "It was pretty fun," she said, her face softening.

"There's nothing wrong with taking a break, especially since you and Pearl have worked really hard on the drill," said Steven, tucking the alligator under his pits, with two thumbs up as if to improve her mood.

"That's what it's all about. The Cluster's not going anywhere... well, yet. But you know what I mean!" Amethyst added with a wave of her free hand. She swung her stuffed prize to stare down at it, and a small giggle fell from her lips. "Plus, we got these awesome little guys so it's not that big a waste."

"And the day's not even over yet!" Steven exclaimed, his grin growing. "We still have the cookout."

"Speaking of," Amethyst began, but she didn't finish.

Peridot supposed she didn't need to, because they stepped onto sand and approached the broken fence that no one ever bothered to fix.

They walked around the sandy beach and arrived at the front of the temple,w hich was already occupied. Garnet was arranging a large picnic blanket to rest on the sand as well as setting up a rectangular grill. Then around the corner, Connie walked toward the temple in a blue and purple sundress.

"Connie!" Steven's face lit up.

He was already running by the time Connie found him, and she, too, gave him a bright smile before running toward him. They met at the middle of their race and grabbed one another in a hug filled with giggling.

The other two made their way to the area in front of the temple, where everything was being placed. The waves were soft in their noise making, as if to not disturb the day-turning-night. Peridot kicked sand gently as they walked to the blanket, were Garnet was working on the grill.

"Have a good day?" she asked.

"You bet," Amethyst answered. She elbowed Peridot. "Didn't we, Peri-kitty?"

"Peri-kitty?"

Peridot chose to not answer her question, but rather give Amethyst her own.

Amethyst smirked and tapped the head of the cat plush in Peridot's arms. "For the cat, duh. I can totally see you as a cat." As if to demonstrate something, Amethyst's whole body glowed, and when the glowing faded, she transformed into a cat. "If we can ever get you to learn to transform, you could totally be one all the time."

"I'd rather not," Peridot said, failing to hide her distaste, though she had no intention of pretending it wasn't there in the first place.

"Well, it's nice that you three had a day to yourselves." Garnet smiled. "Just as long as you stick around for the cookout."

Amethyst scoffed. "Missing out on hot dogs? What kinda fool do you take me for? But the funniest thing happened today at the bottle throwing tent..."

"Peridot."

With a quick turn around, Peridot looked up at Pearl, who was standing above her with a calm expression. This meant she wasn't here to scold her or inform her that something that went wrong, so that was a good sign. Meanwhile, Amethyst continued telling her tale to Garnet about how Peridot won the bottle throw.

"Yes?"

"I was just wondering if you could help me bring the food outside. There's quite a bit to put on the grill, so I just need another set of hands to help."

Peridot glanced at the surrounding people at the cookout and almost commented on how someone like Garnet was likely a better choice than Peridot. However, Pearl shot her finger a quick point toward the temple, and Peridot understood.

What she understood, that was difficult. She just knew she understood something. The two walked side-by-side to the temple.

"So you went to the pier," Pearl noted.

"Yes, we did. We spent most of the day there with these other humans that Steven knows." Peridot stuck out her chest with a winning smile. "I won Amethyst that stuffed animal." She jerked a thumb over her shoulder.

"Oh, did you?" Pearl asked, after glancing back at Amethyst, who was cackling at something Garnet said, with Garnet grinning in success. Pearl spoke in a friendly tone that caught Peridot off guard as she opened the door to the temple.

Not that she and Pearl were not on friendly terms by now; they had started getting along fine… she supposed. Not like how she had gotten along so well with Steven or Amethyst, but better than being on the other side of Pearl's tightened fist. Nonetheless, her tone gave off a strange vibe. "Yes?"

"And she won you that cat, too." Pearl pointed to the stuffed feline Peridot was placing on the window sill in view of the ocean.

Peridot's brow rose, and her hands fell from the toy. "Thank you for telling me what I already knew. I was there, you know." Peridot's hands were in front of her, palms up.

Pearl shrugged. "I just think it's sweet." It took no effort for her to reach up to the tallest cabinet to open it. Shuffling echoed from inside, and Peridot waited.

It got quiet for a minute, and Peridot realized that Pearl was not quick in getting whatever ingredients needed for the cookout. She still bent down, her head in the cupboard, and Peridot had a suspicious feeling that something was distracting her and that it involved her. Was that what she was meant to understand?!

Pearl was the one to break into the silence, once she pulled out from the cupboard with a bundle of hot dog buns. Peridot was almost thankful for it, since it was not a welcoming sort of quiet.

"I saw you, you know." Pearl did not meet Peridot's gaze.

Peridot blinked. The tone came across as solemn, like Pearl was giving a grave announcement. She slowly turned her gaze back to the tall gem. "Saw me... what, exactly?"

"Watching over Amethyst while she slept."

"Oh."

Peridot failed to create any other response. What else could she say? It hadn't even occurred to her that others would notice that private time between her and Amethyst. She would've remarked something about invading her personal bubble, but she couldn't quite bring herself to do it. Instead, she asked, "Is, uh that customary on this planet?"

"Er, well…" Pearl grit her teeth, making a noise that told Peridot something along the lines of no. "Not so much. Some humans probably do it, but I'm not too aware. I do it… sometimes. With Steven. I just need to make sure he's alright, you know?" Pearl's cheeks were painted blue by this point, and her attention fell back to the food and plates she pulled out from the cupboard. "Hmm, but, uh, that's besides the point. I just… saw you two together and wanted to bring it up."

"I was just looking at her," said Peridot. She shrugged. "Is that weird?"

"I mean, you were also petting her hair." Though she did not turn back, Pearl still looked at her through the corner of her eyes, and Peridot caught a glint in her irises. Pearl grinned slightly before it fell.

"R-right."

It wouldn't be good to comment now that she did it mostly because Amethyst's hair felt warm and nice and comfortable as she pushed her fingers through them. Something within her knew saying this out loud would lead to heavy embarrassment.

"But you see, I noticed the… the way you looked at her." Pearl finally looked back at her, and the glint was gone along with her smile, replaced with that serious expression again.

"The way? What, was I doing it wrong?!" Peridot's voice was laced with sarcasm but also ripe with demand.

Pearl brought her hands together, placing them just below her chin. Two index fingers stuck out. "Well…" Her sentence wandered off before it could start, and she sighed. "I don't know how to say this—"

"Well, try!" Peridot shrieked through her teeth.

"That perhaps…" A sigh escaped the taller gem's lips. "Perhaps you've gotten closer to Amethyst than any of us have. That you, uh, have feelings for her?"

Peridot couldn't bring up a response of any sort. Not even a snarky one. For once, words failed her, as did her voice as she tried to open her mouth. Her mind refused to cooperate with her. With a grumble, she turned away, suddenly forgetting the chore given to her.

"Peridot." Pearl's voice became incredibly gentle, and a hand touched Peridot's shoulder. "There's no need to be ashamed.'"

"I'm not ashamed!" Peridot's voice rose in a sudden need to defend herself. And perhaps, as she thought about it, Amethyst. Why would she be ashamed for liking Amethyst? However, the eyes staring at her made her realize that there was more needed to be said. Her shoulders sagged. "I'm… conflicted."

Pearl hummed. "Is this, by chance, what you talked to Steven about earlier?"

"I actually spoke to Greg, as well," Peridot answered. "He had a lot to say on the subject."

"I'm sure he did." Pearl's voice suddenly grew grim.

Peridot decided not to comment on that. "Why are you asking me about this?"

She shrugged. "It's new for me, I suppose." A small laugh escaped her as she set them on the table. "I never expected this to happen with you, you see. Mind you, I can't tell you for certain how Amethyst feels in exchange, but you two really have started getting along pretty well, despite our… previously quarrels with you."

Peridot glanced to the side.

"And this sort of situation must be new to you, so I'd like to think we're all more than willing to help you in any way you can. Like when Greg gave you whatever advice he offered."

Tapping her fingers together and squeezing her toes suddenly felt much more comfortable to do than look at Pearl. Something lingered in her mind, and the more Pearl spoke, the more tempting it wanted to escape her lips.

Apparently, it was clear on her expression, because Pearl smiled softly. "I won't tell her anything, if you're worried. That's all up to you."

That did it. She bit her lip for a moment before she let it out.

"Should I tell her?" She spoke lowly, as if paranoid if the rest of the world could hear the conflict crashing like wild waves inside her.

Pearl suddenly faded as her eyes wandered to her ground and she wondered if any of this was a good idea. Talking about her feelings like this to the other gems and even the human, Greg. It made her feel exposed, vulnerable, small. So so small.

So much of her life, she had information given to her on a yellow screen worked on by her advanced limb enhancers. Gem history, types of gems and their placement in the society, and everything in between. Even bits of data on Earth were sorted somewhere in the archives, from what she recalled.

Now she was trapped in the dark. For Earth, its meanings, its language and diction, its systems…

The emotions that being here apparently gave you. As if upon arriving the atmosphere gave off new rushes of fear and compassion and everything else in between. Like a fallen star with no direction or way back into space. Lost.

And for Diamond's sake, this sort of thing would likely not have been given to her on the screen. Especially since she was a mere Peridot gaining feelings for a Quartz that was also not a Quartz and that was the best thing, honestly, given her experiences with other Quartzs such as Jasper. Homeworld still lingered in her mind, however, and rush of yellow appeared in her vision. An unsettling feeling arrived in her chest and started crushing her, like how Yellow Diamond would surely do so to her if—

"Peridot."

Pearl's voice brought her back to the kitchen, and she looked up to see a smile on the Pearl's face. And realized Pearl kneeled down to stare eye level with Peridot.

"I can't tell you what to do. No one should. We can give you advice, but it's what you do with it that matters." She glanced down. "This sort of thing has to be dealt with carefully, but I trust that things go well between you two, whatever happens." When she glanced up, her smile returned. "Besides, you two are cute together."

Peridot blushed. "Aaaaagh!" she growled and stomped her foot. "That's… just… bahh!"

A little giggle slipped from Pearl's lips. "Love is a strange thing, Peridot." Her voice became dreamy, like an extended sigh. "I can't imagine how you're feeling, but I'm sure it's a bit worrisome. Given how it's new to you, there's probably a lot going on, and you don't know what to do."

Despite Pearl saying how she couldn't imagine how it felt, Peridot gave her silent props.

"But whatever concerns you may have, I just want you to know one thing." Pearl emphasized this with a stuck out index finger.

"And that is?" Peridot was far more interested in the answer than she realized. Her voice rose.

Pearl had the plate of buns and burger hot dog meat in her hands. "It's worth it."

Peridot fell silent, and she watched Pearl walk off, announce something like making sure the others didn't worry and to bring the other stuff on the table, and stepped out of the temple. The door shut by the time Peridot could bring words together.

"That's not fair!" she whined. "What is 'it'?" She crossed her arms with a loud huff. These accursed gems and their… accursed-ness!

With a glance at the napkins and condiments on the table, she jumped. She picked up the remaining items and followed after Pearl, wondering how long the conversation lasted and hoped no one would ask what went on in there.

When she stepped outside, the others had already started eating and talking. A small fire burned in the grill, along with the food she helped Pearl bring out. When she brought the other items over to the skinny gem, she wore a tiny smirk that still said plenty. Peridot simply growled and turned back to the others.

"Hey, Peridot!" Connie greeted with a welcomeness that genuinely surprised her. Peridot realized that she had not connected with the human female in any way. Her impression was certainly decent. However, she knew that, upon hearing that the girl could carry a sword twice her size and wield it like a Quartz warrior, it was best not to mess with her. Her friendly smile told Peridot, however, that she was more than a warrior, though, so she would have to take that into account.

"Hello," she greeted with a stiff nod.

"How's the whole Cluster thing going for you?" she asked as Steven stood up and walked over to Garnet, who was watching the calm fire roar in the grill.

Peridot was thankful that the human gave her a piece of conversation she could happily jump into with ease. "Well, it hasn't shown any signs of rising yet. There have been the tiniest of tremors, based on the readings I've detected, but until I get new readings, I can't tell

Connie nodded, and Peridot noticed in her eyes that she hadn't faded away from the conversation like Amethyst. "Well, I hope it goes well. It sounds pretty terrifying, all those gems as one huge thing."

Steven returned and sat down with them. "I mean, I'm sure it won't be that bad. Once we drill down to it, we should be able to stop it." His face fell. "I feel bad that we have to destroy it, but it's going to hurt the Earth, so, you know." He shrugged.

"Hey, c'mon." Connie exchanged a soft smile with him. "It'll be okay. Don't worry about it for now. Why don't we just eat and watch the sky? I can't wait to see all the stars."

Steven's face slowly lifted. "Good thing it's not cloudy tonight."

Connie laughed. "Very true."

Peridot felt like that conversation was all too familiar, and glanced at Amethyst, who a minute later just sat down with them with a plate filled hot dogs and burgers—enough to nearly make the whole array of food fall from the plate.

Once most of those there—excluding herself and Pearl— finished with their food in silence minus a few pieces of conversation, Garnet later came out with a plate of new food. By then, the moon revealed itself, shining onto the beach with a white glow.

Steven and Connie nearly jumped out of their sitting positions as they took one of the snacks from the silver plate Garnet offered to them, although Connie took a second. Amethyst grabbed three others and briskly thanked Garnet with a thumbs up.

"Do you guys have s'mores on Homeworld?" Connie asked, holding the extra sandwich in her other hand.

Peridot frowned. "No, of course not. Gems have no requirements to eat, so food was hardly something you'd see on any gem controlled planets."

"You should try one!" Connie extended her arm toward Peridot, offering the second s'more with a giant smile.

"Yeah, go for it." Amethyst rested her head on her fist. Her elbow supported her as she looked up at Peridot. She pumped her remaining hand into the air, shouting, "Eat it, eat it, eat it!"

Steven joined in shortly after, much to Connie's clear amusement. Peridot, meanwhile, shot them a dubious look at the snack of three various components squished together. She had to hold it, top and bottom, to keep it together. Still confused, she recalled how the pair of children ate the piece and took in a whole piece with a loud crunch. Once she swallowed, a strange feeling fell down her throat, making her shudder, much like the last time they tried to get her to eat something. This time, however, against the disgusting feeling, came one of sweetness, like a burst of energy burst within her. She could taste each element to the sandwich and they melded perfectly together in a mix of sugar and sweet and suddenly she realized all six pairs of eyes were on her.

It took her a minute to respond, but she simply gave them a shrug and a quick, "I like it."

"Really?" Steven asked, scrunching his face with his hands. "Peridot likes s'mores!"

"Score one for s'mores!" Connie joked, tilted her body toward Steven.

"They're not that good." Peridot turned away, biting her teeth and trying to hide the blush that reached her cheeks.

"So, then, you gonna finish that?" Amethyst asked. "Or…?"

Peridot stared at the s'more,which only had one small bite at the corner, and then at Amethyst, who was leaning in and giving her a sort of grin that completed Amethyst's sentence for her. She nodded and held it out for Amethyst to take. When she did, Amethyst pulled her head back and dropped the s'more into her mouth. It was a minute of obnoxious chewing, and some pieces fell from her mouth.

"Gross," she commented with a grimace.

Amethyst chucked. "You know it." She pushed Peridot's shoulder a bit. "Ah, and you love it."

Yes… STARS, DON'T SAY A WORD! Peridot just nodded again, feeling sweat on her back of her neck.

Not yet. The timing was not quite right for now.

Amethyst rolled her eyes and turned over to the others. Peridot looked up.

They were talking about other things beside her, but whatever they were talking about likely didn't interest her. Instead, her thoughts occupied her attention.

As she observed the stars that glittered like newly formed gems, wondering how many she had passed in her short travels, she sneaked a lance at the gems and human sitting around her. Besides these feelings for Amethyst, there was this new one, being here at this quiet beach. This feeling of content, being around beings who helped and cared with sincerity and compassion to spare, albeit their reluctance in accepting her in the first place. They called her Peridot. She was not Peridot Facet-2F5L Cut-5XG, numbers and letters that were so forgettable. Back home, she was nothing among a sea of other nothings.

Here… she was Peridot. Peri, P-dot, whatever other nickname Amethyst shot at her, because they all made her stomach feel lighter.

And with this soft feeling… yes, she was scared. It was a tight feeling in her chest that made her worry she'd explode or simply poof back into her gem. However, being on Earth, perhaps someday, things would turn out for the better. This planet did offer the unexpected, and she began accepting the patterns, or lack thereof, of this world.

As for Yellow Diamond…

She shook her head a little. Not that, not yet.

With the thought pushed aside, she glanced at the others, who were looking at the stars above or talking to each other. The feeling's word came to her, upon seeing these gems and human bonding: comfort.

"... I like it here."

They all turned to Peridot, reactions varying but mostly with wide eyes. She flinched away and felt a little sweat slip down her face. "W-what? Is that surprising?"

"In a way, I suppose," Pearl admitted with a laugh.

"Nonetheless, we're happy to hear that, Peridot." Garnet smiled.

Pearl turned from Garnet and back to Peridot, also smiling. "We are. Truly."

"So now you can never leave!" Amethyst popped in between Peridot and Steven, cackling. "Bwahahaha!"

Connie leaned in to Steven, shielding her mouth from the others with her palm. "I bet the s'mores convinced her," she said.

"They the best of snacks," he said in a matter-of-fact tone, with a chuckle under his breath.

"You still need to figure out where those stars are goin', girl! Psst, hey." Amethyst leaned onto Peridot, shoulder to shoulder, making the latter blush again. The Quartz continued in a whisper that was actually loud, "You should totally put them on your butt."

"We can hear you, you know!" Pearl cried out.

Steven snickered, and beside him, Connie bit her lip, fighting back from doing the same.

"Butt stars, huh?" Peridot grinned wickedly and let out her goofy laugh. While she did not plan to put the Crystal Gems' insignia in such an odd place, for this one occasion, she said to Amethyst, "Heh heh, so would that be one star, or should I get two; one for each cheek?"

Now Connie joined in with Steven, the two falling back and clutching their chests as they slipped into loud bursts of laughter. Pearl groaned and smacked her face, mumbling something about Amethyst being a bad influence. Garnet only gave her a smile of pearly whites. Amethyst fell on Peridot while letting out insane laughter, making Peridot fall onto the grass with a yelp.

"Oh, man. You're a riot, Peridot."

Peridot tried not to notice the lack of distance between them, or the feeling of Amethyst's locks on her face, or how this reminded her of that incident after she saved Amethyst from the drill. She just smiled and said, "Well, good thing I'm not leaving, right?"

Amethyst gazed down at her for a moment, her face blank as if registering something. Then her eyes practically glowed, a genuine smile falling on her face. "Totally."

9k words! This is soooo much for me. I'm sorry but hopefully I don't need to be. I am glad people really like this and I hope you all continue to do so 3


	5. Chapter 5

(I'm awfully sorry about the severe lack of updates! And also this chapter. I've struggled incredibly hard with it, and even now, am dubious of the results. I often have doubts of my own writing skills, as many likely feel, so I can only hope you enjoy!)

Chapter Five

Upon opening her eyes, Peridot found herself surrounded by darkness.

She blinked to clarify her vision wasn't failing her. Then she gazed at her fingers, only to see a dark outline of her appendages. With a quick glimpse around, it all stayed the same, not to her surprise; shadowed in nothingness. No signs of life to be seen.

Peridot, curiosity beating out any sort of fear that swelled within her, stepped forward.

Yellow glowed underneath her foot.

She shrieked and recoiled back. The ground changed, as if activated by sensing her presence. The glow faded in and out, like a firefly, but then the color illuminated in a narrow pathway. It stretched out far into the mouth of black, and Peridot saw no end to it.

Now the warning signs echoed and practically yelled at her that this would not lead to anything good. Despite this, she followed the path, which winded further and further. Still, no other sight was around, other than the path itself.

She walked. She walked for a long time, wondering where this would lead her, and if it was even leading anywhere. Her mind raced and kept her occupied, but it also kept coming back to the same question: Where am I?

For a moment, she tried thinking back to what had happened before ending up here, but a flash interrupted her train of though. Peridot had to shield her eyes from the sudden change in brightness.

Once her eyes adjusted, she looked around. Now there was a throne, a grand throne that could easily fit fifty of her own kind. Aside from the walkway and the throne, however, Peridot saw nothing but growing darkness. Below her, she saw no sign of a bottom surface...

Something was in front of the throne. From her distance, it was hard to tell. She hurried her pace. It was a small pile of what appeared to be dust-or worse, but that thought concerned her.

...

She stopped walking. Her whole body froze, or at least it felt like it. Her shakes, shaking, curled into tight fists against her chest. Once she got a clear view of the color of the pile, she stopped. It felt like everything stopped.

"No... no no no no," Peridot repeated with a shake of her head, her eyes glue to the pile of purple shards in front of her.

Amethyst's gem was scattered into so many pieces that Peridot couldn't count them all, but the amount didn't matter. All she knew was that it was too many, too many to take hold of and never let go.

"Amethyst?" Peridot's voice shrank. She knelt down in front of the shards. Her fingers delicately held them and pinched her skin, but she felt nothing. She cradled a pair of pieces in her hands. Taking a good look at her hands, they were shaking furiously.

She tried to tell herself that something was off. Her mind now screamed at her that none of this made sense, since she saw the Crystal Gems not even a few hours ago. She remembered Amethyst's eyes glowing as she jumped atop Peridot in pure delight. They were laughing, so content with everything.

"Amethyst!"

Suddenly, tears welled in her eyes, and her body shook. She clutched her stomach as it to hold back the shaking, to take control which she knew was impossible at this point. Her eyes remained on the remains of her friend, her ex-enemy, someone she wanted to spend the rest of her time on Earth with. Because that little voice that tried to convince her that this wasn't real wasn't loud enough. After all, what if this was real, and what if this did happen? The image of Amethyst falling apart made the tears fall thick and hot.

"Why?" Peridot's voice cracked, anger and sadness crashing inside her. Her voice grew as she asked no one, "Why?"

Then... footsteps.

No. Heels. And a shadow cast itself over her.

Before she could turn around, a voice spoke above her, thunderous. "There should be no tears over a defective Amethyst."

Her breathing was still heavy from crying. She looked behind herself, and her whole body trembled.

"Yellow..." Her voice was too broken, and she sniffed. "Yellow Diamond."

"Don't speak unless I ask of you," Yellow Diamond scolded, voice growing louder yet still menacingly calm. She stepped forward, heels clacking against the floor with a metallic boom in Peridot's ears. "She had no use for Homeworld, that Quartz. She was no better off alive."

She stepped back, and her feet brushed up against Amethyst's shards. Her fingers couldn't stop shaking. No way on Earth or Homeworld this is real! Is this one of those dreams?! Stars, I hope I never have one again! And when will this one end?!

"And you are hardly any better."

Peridot stayed quiet, words lost.

"Just as useless. You failed your mission on Earth-no, you did more than fail. You betrayed your own planet, your own Diamond, over a worthless planet." Yellow Diamond's hands clenched. "You're not worthy of living-not here. Not anywhere."

Peridot couldn't even bring out any response before Yellow Diamond's boot rose, rising several feet into the air. Peridot turned around in hopes of retreating, but the ground had vanished, as if crumbled without her knowledge! Amethyst's shards had vanished.

She looked up, and a heel was approaching her, flashing in bright light. Her breathing grew shallow and staggered, and she lost control of herself and screamed.

Peridot lurched up, clutching her head, her fingers ghosting over her gem. The screams were replaced with heavy, wheezy gasps. Several things felt different from where she was just moments ago, much to her relief.

Rather than standing along a golden path-walk, she sat up back inside the barn.

And she was alone.

Peridot pressed her palms underneath her eyes, rubbing away the tears that actually appeared as she woke up. She sniffled and looked outside. The moon was incredibly low, so it was early in the morning. She did not get much sleep, and she was not going to sleep anytime soon!

The images looked so real. Of course they weren't but stars, it felt like she was actually holding Amethyst's broken gem pieces in her grasp.

Peridot stood up and walked outside. It was a little cold, but she didn't think much of it. She found the warp pad not too far away.

She didn't think twice of this. She needed to see Amethyst.

She traveled the beam of bright blue light and seconds later found herself inside the Temple. It was quiet.

Peridot hurried into the living room, not realizing that she was not the only one awake in the Temple. She collided into something and struggled to keep herself upright. With windmilling arms, she composed herself and glanced up at who she walked into.

"Nyeh! Garnet-!"

Garnet placed a finger against her lips. When she pointed behind Peridot, the green gem turned. Steven was fast asleep in bed, back turned to the wall, and for whatever reason, Amethyst had slung herself atop the couch, snoring to her heart's content.

Peridot felt a heavy weight lift from her thin muscles, and her shoulders slacked. What she saw was nothing more than a dream, but she felt relief seeing Amethyst alive and sleeping peacefully, her gem shining and in one piece. She let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding.

Then she realized Garnet was still there. The fusion was just looking at her. Peridot bit her lip.

Garnet stayed unresponsive for a few moments, but then she jabbed a thumb toward the front door. She walked outside before Peridot could respond. As opposed to following the gem, Peridot gazed at the sleeping Amethyst.

This crazy gem had been messing with her mind, clearly. And unintentionally. Now she had invaded her dreams in the worst way possible. Now the thought of losing her crept into her mind. Like without her, everything just... sucked.

Amethyst mumbled in her sleep, which made Peridot jump back. If she was caught looking at her as she slept, she would never hear the end of it! She stepped away and finally followed Garnet outside to see her standing on the porch, arms crossed.

Said fusion did not react when Peridot stood beside her. She rested her arms on the railing. They stood there, in silence, for a whole minute.

The quiet was killing Peridot. Very slowly. "You're not asking why I'm here?" Peridot shot her a confused look.

Garnet shrugged. "You're always welcome here. There's always room at the Temple, if you ever want to stay. Though I'm sure we could find a replacement for the bathroom."

"Right," Peridot grumbled, as the memories of being stuck in that bathroom were nothing pleasant. She placed her chin under her arms. Then something came to her, and she added, "Or do you already know why because of your future vision?"

"That's not how it always works, but I've got a few... ideas in here." She brushed her shades further up her nose, flashing a grin. It softened. "I know you've got a lot worrying you, but... I can assure you, things will pick up. In due time."

Peridot peered up at her, eyes wide. A small part of her wanted to remark on future vision, call in unfair and a severe lack of privacy (darn Sapphires!). However, hearing her say that gave her the tiniest shred of hope. That things would improve. Though how she would get to that section of her new life, she remained clueless on.

"That's... good to know," she replied, avoiding the fusion's gaze. She failed to see Garnet's eyes, but nonetheless found her fairly intimidating. Perhaps it was also the fact that she couldn't even see the rest of her expression. Only a smile that became gentle.

Garnet nodded. "Well, I can tell you need some time... alone. But I do have something that might help a little."

Peridot's interest piqued. She looked up. "Which is?"

From within her crossed arms, Garnet revealed a familiar rectangle.

"My tape recorder?"

"You left it out in the field a while back. Probably just forgot about it. But I thought I'd return it to you when you need it most. It could help sort out your thoughts, at the very least." Garnet knelt down to hand it to her, but not before tapped her shades, which vanished. Three eyes stared into Peridot's face, with a very soft gaze in every one. "It can't hurt."

Peridot flinched, but she took the recorder. Garnet giggled.

"Well, thank you, Garnet," Peridot muttered, looking at the recorder.

"Anytime." Another tap against her face, and the shades materialized over her eyes. She turned toward the house. "Don't lose it this time!"

Peridot's eyes rolled.

She watched Garnet return inside the Temple before she turned back. Her gaze wandered to her recorder, and it came to her that she had not been keeping track of her logs as of recent.

With a tap of the record button, she began.

"Log Date..." After a long pause, she mustered a tired sigh. "I've lost track at this point. Similar to how I felt as if I've lost control over... well, multiple things since my crash here on Earth." Her eyes drifted to the beach feet way. There was the lightest of breezes, smooth against her skin. "Garnet was right. I have too much going on, and I'm not sure what to do. I doubt talking about it will help," she finished, mumbling the words.

The sun was rising. The skies were brightening with faded orange colors. Eve the deep blue ocean had a yellow glow brushing across the waves.

Peridot sighed again. "I can't even imagine looking through my old logs-not on this one, of course, but from my previous tech. There's a lot that's… different now. For the most part, it's a good change," she clarified to no one in particular. A pause lingered. "But it's still weird! Thinking back to what everything was like a few months ago.

"Maybe that's why everything feels so strange now." Her voice lowered as she scratched her head. "Or maybe it's also because Earth is strange, too. Because it is. It doesn't make sense! None of it does. You aren't meant to do something, you just… do whatever, I guess. Which can be annoying, if not interesting, but..." She paused, blinking, and for a moment, lowered her recorder. She thought for a moment before bringing it closer to her mouth once more to say, "What am I supposed to do? How do I know? I know you can do whatever you want if you 'try,' but I've never done that before! How do I figure out anything I'm supposed to do? About these change in feelings, about my horrifying dreams, about all my failures, just... everything!"

She stopped, taking in a large gulp of air. Gems don't require oxygen, but at the moment, it felt needed. It took a minute or two for her to compose herself and find the next words.

"The drill's ready to destroy the Cluster within a day or two, but a small part of me assumes the worst. That it won't work." She snorted, but not particularly amused. "And even if it does, Yellow Diamond will surely..."

She let that sentence drop. It was a terrible thought that she begged to leave her be, but it refused. One last sigh.

"I have no idea what I should do, and it's terrifying."

"Peridot?"

Peridot nearly jumped over the railing before glancing behind her shoulder. Amethyst stood at the doorway, her hair even more unkempt than usual. She adjusted her black shoulder strap as she walked toward Peridot, who pressed the recorder button to end it.

"You weren't listening, were you!?" Peridot panicked.

"Only something in the end about the Cluster. I, uh, didn't mean to eavesdrop, I swear." Amethyst wore a crooked smile. "I can just... I'll leave, if you want-"

"No, no!" Peridot shouted a little hurriedly. Amethyst stopped and looked at her, lips pursed out. "You can join me if you want."

Amethyst smiled. "Heh, cool." Her arms slung behind her head, she walked over to Peridot's side.

Peridot cast her a quick look. The wind blew Amethyst's hair, lifting it toward the sea. The sun rose further, spreading a soft, orange glow on the Quartz. She stared at the ocean, but her focus did not look like it was on the salty waves.

Feeling her face warm up, Peridot curtly turned away.

"You seem tense."

Amethyst's eyebrows perked up. Peridot had a feeling it was crystal clear on her face. Though for a moment tempted to brush it off with a confident, if not dismissive, "I don't know what you're talking about," Amethyst's concerned voice made the idea forgotten.

"Is it that obvious?" she muttered.

Amethyst's lips curled up at the edges. "Besides you talking about junk in your log thing? A bit." She laughed softly. "I saw you talking to Garnet, and it was weird since, you know, you don't usually visit this early. I was just wondering."

"About what?"

"Are you going to be okay?"

Peridot bit her lip, half tempted to let spill everything. However, certainty wasn't on her side. It was not as if Amethyst could understand what she was feeling (could she?), so how could she response?

Exposing her feelings brought on a strange new terror she never felt before. It was too much, even if she felt a little relief before in talking about into her log, but she wanted to keep it to herself.

"It's nothing," she excused, a little sweat dripping on her forehead. She avoided Amethyst's gaze, which had grown concerned while Peridot had panicked in her head. She chose to ignore it, sticking with putting up the barriers. "Everything's fine. Nothing you need to worry about, I assure you."

Amethyst's face dropped with disappointment. However, she just rubbed at her face for a moment. The two stopped talking for a few moments until Amethyst let out a loud breath of air. Peridot looked at her questioningly. "So, uh, I'm thinking of just... taking a walk around the beach." Amethyst tilted her body toward the ocean. "Wanna join?"

The sudden question caught Peridot off guard. "Umm... sure."

"Sweet. Then let's go!" Amethyst jumped over the railing and landed on the sand below.

Peridot preferred the stairs. Amethyst waited for her at the bottom, and once Peridot made her way down, they started walking.

And Amethyst was quick to start another conversation, by starting with another odd question.

"Don't you ever, like, get lonely?"

"Lonely?"

"You know, at the barn. Since no one else is there... I dunno, just thought I'd ask." Amethyst crossed her arms.

Peridot didn't answer immediately. Rather, she wondered what was going through Amethyst's mind. Asking to walk around the beach, asking if she was lonely; it was borderline suspicious. "I like it here," she replied. "There's plenty of space for myself! A huge improve on Steven's bathroom."

Amethyst chuckled. "You got me there. But it's also pretty far from the Temple."

"There's the warp pad," Peridot said, eyebrow raised.

"Yeahhhh, I guess that's true." She kicked the sand lightly.

Peridot was no fool. Amethyst was upset by something, as well. By what, she couldn't quite put her finger on it. She wasn't always that great at that part. By instinct, she desired to comfort Amethyst, but she hadn't the faintest.

"Well, the reason I came over was because... I had one of those dreams."

"Oh, really?" Amethyst's pitch rose with interest. "So, uh, what happened? Anything weird or crazy?"

Peridot cringed and regretted saying anything instantly. How could she explain her dream to Amethyst? She dreamed of her getting shattered!How do you just say that to someone?! It didn't sound like something appropriate to say. "It's, umm, hard to explain. But it was…" Her fingers stroked the recorder. "An unpleasant experience. I thought I should at least tell you why I came over."

Realization dawned on Amethyst. "Oh, you had a nightmare. It's a bad dream, something scary or something, usually," she added before Peridot asked. "I'm sure it wasn't that bad."

 _I doubt that._

Amethyst stared at her when she didn't respond, then said, "You don't want to let them get to you.

"It felt real," Peridot let slip without thought and very much instantly regretted so. Curse her stupid mouth!

Amethyst's eyes widened, and rather than get angry, she sighed. "Okay, seriously, you shouldn't be afraid to tell me. Being secret-y about whatever problems you have ain't gonna fix it."

Peridot had a feeling this was about more than her slip up. "It's nothing you need to be concerned about," Peridot shot back, a bit more defensive than she planned.

"You sure?" Amethyst asked, voice laced with doubt.

"Yes, because everything's fine." Peridot crossed her arms firmly, pose straightened.

Amethyst's nostrils flared, eyebrows knitted down. "Sure it is. Everything's totally fine," she whispered with heavy sarcasm that even Peridot caught onto. "Is that what you told Garnet and Pearl?"

Peridot looked at her. "Garnet? Pearl? What do they have to do with this?"

Amethyst's eyes shrank, like she was caught in headlights. She no longer looked completely irritated, but… mostly frustrated. She turned away and said, "F-forget it! Seriously, it's nothing."

Peridot noticed the tension in the air, and hated it. This wasn't what she wanted and couldn't help but feel miserable now. Still, what did she mean when she said Garnet and Pearl?

"Sorry, I shouldn't have asked," Amethyst whispered, brushing through her hair. "It's none of my business, so it's... whatever. I guess I got a little too nosy, you know."

Peridot smiled a little. "Yes, I suppose you did get a little... scent sponge-y."

Amethyst snickered. "Alright, that wasn't too bad. I'll give you that."

"So you walk around the beach every morning?" Peridot couldn't help but ask. "You don't exactly come across as a gem who prefers mornings."

"Not at all," Amethyst scoffed. "I'm more of a night owl, if you will."

"Owl? You look nothing like one... unless that's just a figure of-"

"Well, now I am!" Amethyst glowed and in her place, a purple owl flew midair. She laughed with more enthusiasm this time, and Peridot laughed back. Amethyst, however, was quick to transform back to her original form, stretching out her arms. "I actually came out here for some early morning pranks. If you're cool with that, I mean."

Peridot glanced over in the direction of the town. "No one's out here, though. Not as far as I can tell."

"You'd be surprised." Amethyst slung her arm around Peridot's shoulder and directed them toward part of the beach further away from Beach City. They didn't take too long walking before they spotted a small circle of people sitting in the sand. Amethyst shot a finger at them. "I introduce you to... tourists!"

"What about them?" Peridot squinted at the four younger looking humans surrounding a pile of burnt out logs.

Amethyst looked ecstatic before she ran over to a rock embedded in the sand not too far from them. Behind it, she pulled out a cardboard box. It was filled with a rainbow array of things that Peridot couldn't quite figure out.

With a faux serious expression, Peridot said, "Explain."

Amethyst picked up one of the colored things—a purple one—and tossed it lightly in the air, only to catch it again. "Water balloons, my friend. Just fill up these babies with water and boom, a great weapon for mild pranks."

"So that's an actual weapon?" Peridot asked, somewhat in belief.

Amethyst laughed. "Nah—well… not really. You throw them at people and get them soaked, so it doesn't hurt them. At most, it'll probably annoy them. But these morons decided to run out here in the middle of the night before, yelling and throwing stuff! This close," she said, squishing her thumb and forefinger together, "to breaking a window. Pearl was gonna flipped, I swear."

"And you want me to help?"

"You've got a good throwing arm," Amethyst said, elbowing her playfully. "The perfect throwing arm for revenge, heheh! Just give it a throw at 'em. But keep quiet." She tapped her lips with her finger as she took Peridot's wrist with her other hand. Pulling them towards a large rock several feet away from the group of humans, who failed to notice either gem, Amethyst next brought over the box of water balloons. She, again, pressed a finger to her lips

Peridot peeked out from the rock to get a look at the humans, who looked about twenty-something. They also looked bored and rather sleepy, but one of them was talking to the others with some enthusiasm.

"She didn't even notice. I'm telling you, she is clueless about the whole thing!" the girl in the bikini and crop top told her friends, her hands moving around along with her words.

The guy with a lip piecing and glasses shook his head. "Is it really that big a deal?"

The girl smirked. "I mean—"

She cut herself off when a water balloon rained down from the sky, staining her hair, makeup, and crop top. She shrieked and stood up, flailing and shouting at the other three visitors, who just watched in confusion. Their confusion, however, morphed into similar shock when they were hit, next, water splashing across their bodies and even their bags beside them. A couple balloons landed at their feet as they all stood up.

"GET WRECKED!" Amethyst cried out in a deeper voice.

She grabbed Peridot , pulling them behind the large rock, one that easily concealed them from the humans. They started laughing, unable to control themselves. Amethyst was clutching her stomach at this point, and Peridot leaned against the rock. They still peeked out to observe the trio of college kids, ignoring the tears that welled up from their laughing.

"Oh my god, I can't believe this! I just.. UGH!"

"Think it was those weirdos in that beach house over there?" the second male human asked, pointing over at the Temple.

"I'm getting my parents over here. I swear, those losers won't hear the end of this!" the woman continued, exasperated.

"C'mon, guys, it's just a little water," murmured the other girl, who brushed her long, wet locks from her face. "We got some towels…."

"Let's bail!" the first one cried out, angrily rising to her feet and stomping away with her bag. The other two followed not too far behind, either rushing to the crop top woman's aid or just as irritated. Amethyst and Peridot watched them walk off the beach and toward Beach City.

"Hey!" Amethyst yelled through snickering, cupping her hands around her mouth. She then pointed beside her. "You forgot your boombox!"

They failed to listen to her, or did but refused to look back. Amethyst rolled her eyes and spun around to face Peridot, who still sported a goofy grin.

"Welp, I tried. But, uh, don't tell the others about this," Amethyst said, again laughing. "I don't usually prank a lotta random kids, and Steven told me it was better to just leave them alone, but…" Her eyes drifted up. "Well, he's not here, so who cares?"

"My lips are sealed. Our little secret." Peridot pointed from herself to Amethyst, chuckling.

"Good." Amethyst winked.

The previous song the humans were listening to faded out, and seconds later, another one rolled into the air. This one had a funky beat, fast and something that instantly caught Amethyst's attention.

"Aww, sweet! This song rocks!" Her face lit up. "Good to know they have good taste, am I right?" She ran to stand next to the boombox and starting swaying her hips. "Come dance with me!" She stuck her hand out when Peridot walked over to her.

"Dancing?!" Peridot exclaimed, recoiling away from her hand. "Doesn't that mean…?"

Peridot didn't need to complete the sentence for Amethyst to figure it out. Her face fell, but she also blushed. "N-no! Not for fusion!" She tried to pull off a laugh, but it came out weak and almost awkward. "We also dance for fun, you know."

"I never learned to dance." She crossed her arms. "It isn't a Peridot's place to dance on Homeworld. That was a field for Emeralds."

Amethyst rolled her eyes. "Right. But hey, that's cool. I'm sure you can do it. Just, uhh… go for it! Show me what you got!"

Peridot braced herself, but tried to keep an open mind. After all, she had seen Emeralds dance before. How hard could it be?

Except she had no idea what she was doing. She moved her feet around and tried to shake her hips, but Amethyst was way better at it. Her arms moved around, but even to Peridot, it felt too automatic. Any attempts at finding a sort of rhythm were not there, and eventually stopped after nearly tripping on her own two feet.

"Wow, you weren't kidding." Amethyst rubbed the back of her head.

"I told you!"

"Yeah, you did." Amethyst stepped toward her. "Don't worry, though. You'll figure it out. Just… let's start off slow. I mean." Her face flushed a darker shade of purple as her eyes turned away. "I don't dance a lotta slow dances or anything, but we'll figure something out."

Peridot's head was still spinning. They were going to dance. Even if it didn't always correlate with fusion, the very idea of it couldn't escape her mind. What if they fused on accident?

Or what if she couldn't fuse? As if she needed another reason to feel like a complete failure!

One of Amethyst's hands fell to Peridot's waist. Peridot froze at the touch. The other hand locked around Peridot's, and she intertwined their fingers together. Her thoughts fell away.

"Just follow my lead." Amethyst's voice lowered.

"Absolutely." Peridot's immediate response was hardly above a whisper, her expression nothing short of starstruck.

Their foot movements were only by inches at a time. Amethyst, rather, guideD her back and forth or left and right, then back again. Peridot kept her gaze on Amethyst through the whole thing, as if she would mess up if she didn't.

They moved around the beach slowly. Peridot followed Amethyst's feet and noticed a pattern in there somewhere. If only she could get the hang of it.

"See, you just gotta not think about it, but… also know what you're doing," Amethyst said. She glanced down. "No looking down at your feet or anything. You just gotta… be in the moment and go for it."

"For a Quartz, that's easy, to just go on instinct," Peridot grumbled loud and clear.

Amethyst shot her a deadpan look.

"It's a compliment!"

Amethyst just stared at her for a moment, but then she snickered. "I guess it's true though. I don't think about how I dance. Oh, here, I'll show you some of my moves."

Amethyst let go of Peridot and stepped back. Her body began moving that way where her body positively flowed, shining with confidence. And the distance between the two grew to a point where Peridot wished she could feel Amethyst against her again. Amethyst swirled around, shaking her backside and Peridot really needed to stop staring but oh, stars.

She tossed a look over her shoulder at Peridot. "Like what you see?" she asked, fingers brushing through her hair.

"Yes." Peridot's face burned.

Amethyst's face shifted, and her hands fell away from her hair. She looked shocked, if anything, and she blushed, lips pursing out. There was silence and staring for several long moments. Peridot almost spoke up again, to make sure Amethyst was paying any attention.

Then Amethyst nodded her head forward, chuckling under her breath. "You're hilarious, Peri," she responded as she pulled her head back up, hair swaying back.

Peridot blinked, her mouth falling but not coming up with anything to say. After all, she wasn't attempting to be funny there, nor did she follow her accidental joke. Rather than harp on it, she grinned confidently and said, "You know it."

Smiling, Amethyst danced her way toward Peridot, and once the former held out her hands, Peridot knew what was next. She took Amethyst's hands into hers. Both of their backs straightened, poses parallel with one another, and the rush of waves collapsed around their ankles. The water was ice cold.

And they continued dancing together. It wasn't wild like Amethyst's moves, but their movements were faster than the first time. Amethyst twirled Peridot, and Peridot spun around. They pulled away, only connected by each other's hand, but eventually return into one another's arms.

"There, you got it!" Amethyst exclaimed through laughter.

The waves were loud and amongst the whistling of the morning wind, sound resonated among the music to the boombox behind Amethyst, which was now a softer tune of guitar strumming. The sea smelled like salt and pure bliss, this feeling that made Peridot shut her eyes.

Peridots did not act much on instinct, but as of recent, she realized that she was starting to do a lot of things Peridots were certainly not programmed for.

Peridot released one of Amethyst's hands and spun her around. Amethyst let out a surprised noise, but she was still smiling. They met in the middle again, not noticing that the music from the boombox silenced.

Peridot forgot about the nightmares, the feelings of failure. All she focused on was Amethyst, who was beaming and looked so happy, and Peridot just got lost in seeing that pure delight. At the very least, being different has grown on me.

Then Amethyst tilted her back, and Peridot's balance faltered. One leg kicked out in protest. Before her back met the sand, however, Amethyst's hand gripped her back. Peridot yipped.

They remained in this pose, with Peridot leaning against one heel and Amethyst's hand on her back. Amethyst glanced down at her, a glee-filled smile gracing her face. Peridot couldn't help but smile back.

Amethyst's gem glowed, and a light appeared above Peridot, just barely visibly in her vision. Everything about her felt light and warm, starting from her gem and spreading throughout her body. It wasn't the usual feeling that came from simply looking at Amethyst, either.

Their eyes met, and it was only now when Peridot noted the small gap between them, their noses now touching and Amethyst's hair spreading all around her like a light grey veil. What little breath she had escaped her in a whoosh. One swift move, and their lips could meet. Their gems were now bursting with a brilliant glow, but neither of them said anything of it. They just stared.

Then everything felt light and bright and beautiful.


	6. Chapter 6

Warning: Some language ahead. Not too much to warrant a T-rating, I believe, but just a warning!

Chapter Six

Underneath the orange skies of dawn, a great, big blob of white formed on the beach in a short distance from the Temple. Only the green and purple gems stood out, and the white mess spun in the air. Legs and arms stretched out, and a sea-green body landed on the ground, large silver hair with spiked edges snaking around her shoulders and waterfalling down her back.

She fell onto her butt, less than graceful. With a small grunt, she blinked four eyes as if processing what just happened. Very slowly, those eyes grazed over her new form. Then she smiled. Then she started laughing—though it was more of a cackle—throwing her head back.

"Well! It's about time," she said as she sobered up. She rose to her feet with an excited jump, stretching out her single pair of arms behind her head. "Man, you two are a piece of work. Whew!" Placing her arms to her sides, she took a good look around her, as if experiencing the scenery for the first time. In a way, she was. She looked down, and gawked. "Whoa, fuck, I'm tall! This is the best fusion ever!"

She swiveled her hips around, trying to observe her new body. Her new body, because she was here now. Here. Now. At last! As if now realizing this, she started laughing, even falling back onto her back. Her feet kicked in the air as she laughed. "Oh my gosh, I can't believe it!"

Once she relaxed herself, the fusion rose to her feet. She knew there was a lot more to do and discover, but her gaze wandered to the ocean. Approaching it, she felt the water brushing against her boots. The sound of gentle waters met her ears.

At the moment, she just wanted to... feel.

Then... a gasp. She turned to the source.

Steven was running up to her, eyes practically singing with joy. "Oh my gooooosh!"

"Whoa, Steven!" As if his excitement was contagious, her face lit up. "Wassup?"

"You know me! So this means that... Peridot and Amethyst fused?"

She grinned. "The fusion of the two best gems ever, that's me. Nice to meet'cha! I'm..." She blinked a few times as something hit her, and a small blush rushed to her cheeks. She scratched her cheek. "Uhh, I haven't actually thought about the whole name thing yet. But whatever!" With a chuckle, she spread out her arms and performed a small twirl. "Check me out."

"I can't believe it!" Steven bounced between a different foot.

""What do you think?" she asked, flexing a muscle.

"You look amazing. I love it!"

"Me, too!" The fusion clenched her fists on either side of her face and knelt down to him. "Isn't it exciting?"

"Of course! Especially since Peridot and Amethyst have had talking about their feelings for—"

With a quick flinch, excitement fading, the fusion grabbed Steven in one arm, using the other to cover his mouth. Though he continued mumbling, his words were scarcely intelligible. She gave him an awkward chuckle. "Ahahah, you can shut up now. For your own good."

"Wh-what?" Steven asked, more lost than worried about that statement.

"I kid, I kid." She put him down, patting his head lightly. "So! What're you doing out here, anyway?"

"I got up for breakfast, and Amethyst wasn't there. She's usually in the kitchen to drink the rest of the syrup I don't use," Steven explained, breaking for a moment to laugh. "I asked Garnet where she was, and she took me here!"

Steven pointed to Garnet, who was standing behind him. The fusion blinked, only now noticing Garnet's presence, and let out a noise of surprise. "Oh, Garnet!" She glanced between the two of them, then bent her knees to meet Steven at eye level again. "What, were you two standing there, watching me?" A grin crossed her face.

"Just a bit," Garnet answered for him. Steven just laughed.

"Creeps," she muttered. Once straightening her posture, Garnet walked over to them. The fusion grinned while looking down at Garnet, who was about a head shorter than her. "Look at this, look at this!" She placed her palm atop her head, then waved it above Garnet's. Garnet just shook her head with a smile. "So, Garnet, how do I look?" She twirled her hips, striking a pose with her hands on her hips.

"Wonderful, but that's not what I'm concerned with." Garnet placed a hand below her chin.

The fusion pouted. "Is it the name? I just haven't bothered with thinking about it yet. Besides, I doubt you figured out your name the first time around," she defended herself.

"I didn't, but I meant to ask how you're feeling."

The fusion beamed, face lighting up. "I've never felt any better! I mean, yeah, I was just made, but I love this so much." While laughing again, she wrapped her arms around herself. Once she calmed down, she added, "It's kinda weird, too, since Peridot never fused before, so she's a bit confused. But she'll get the hang of it." She waved a dismissive hand.

"As long as they're both comfortable, as well as you." Garnet crossed her arms with a gentle smile.

"Yes, but isn't this amazing? I just... I'm speechless! I know I just came around and all that, but I couldn't be happier right now." The fusion rose onto her toes. Bending her stomach, she reached out and held Garnet's hands in hers, eyes almost dancing with delight. "Is this why you were talking to Peridot earlier? Did you know this?"

Garnet's toothy grin was enough of an answer, but the fusion blinked. Eyes glossed over, her attention faded. Ringing droned in her ears. "What were you talking about...?" she murmured, and as she tried to think over it, a small headache hit her upside the head. She cringed but thought nothing of it.

"Are you okay?" Steven piped up, eyebrows curved in concern.

"Awuh!" She blinked, focusing back on the two gems in front of them. "It's fine! It's fine!" she exclaimed in a flurry, but seeing the distress on Steven's face, she forced a sly smile on her face. "I'm cool."

When the fusion met gazes with Garnet, Garnet did not say anything. Just stared. She had just been made, and she was already frustrated with that. Dang shades!

She flinched when Garnet walked closer to her and held her hands. "Just be careful, right?"

The fusion, initially confused by those words, gave her a lopsided smirk. "Define careful," she snickered, then rolled her eyes. "Alright, alright, I promise. But, uh, do you guys think I could have some time to myself?" She shrugged sheepishly. "Just to, like, get the hang of myself. Know what I mean?"

"Hmm, I get it." Garnet placed a hand on the fusion's shoulder. "Go have fun."

The fusion's face brightened up as she fervently nodded. With a twirl around, hair swishing, she ran off. Her long rush of hair flew in the air. Steven stood beside Garnet with a small look of disappointment as they watched her run from the beach.

"Aww, but I wanted to talk to her more."

"Give her a while," Garnet advised, patting the top of his head. "I'm sure she'll love to hang out with you."

"Mhhh, okay." Steven, though still with some remaining upset in his voice, nodded to himself.

"AaaaaaAPATITE! OH SHIT, WAIT!"

Garnet recoiled and put her hands over Steven's ears. The fusion stampeded toward them, sporting a gigantic grin.

"I got it now! Green Apatite! Just…" She stopped speaking for a second, noticing Garnet protecting Steven's ears and Steven's sheepish smile. She chuckled under her breath. "Just thought I should let you know. Now this time, I'm really going!"

Garnet sighed as Green Apatite ran once more back to the fields behind the beach.

Green Apatite ran through the fields, bearing no destination in mind nor even a particular direction to run. All she desired was running, and her senses ran wild with each new feeling that ran through her core. She slipped out of her ankle height, dark blue boots to feel the grass curling against her bare feet. Though she wasn't running fast, the wind still rushed against her body. Only once or twice did she feel a stab of pain in her head, but she brushed it aside, taking it as nothing more than being a new fusion.

She had no idea how long she was running, either, except noticing the sun rising and spreading warmth through her body. It was one of the clearer days around Beach City. It couldn't be any more perfect!

Once she started seeing less grass, did she realize how far she had gone. Though she cold see herself travelling far, since gems do not exhaust easily, she thought of Steven and the others. She could tell Steven was excited to see her and wanted to talk to her for hours.

With a quick turn around, she began her journey back.

It took some time before she could finally spot a sign of Beach City. But by then, she was panting quite a bit, feeling a hint of exhaustion. Though she wanted to see the others, coming back tired would just not do!

Not too far away from her was a large tree among others that stretched out much higher than her.

With a small jump, she grabbed a tree branch and swung back and forth a couple times, whooping to herself before finally flipping onto the branch that held onto her with just enough strength. She wasn't that tall, after all. She sat down, leaving her legs to dangle and swing as she took a moment to collect herself.

A bit farther away was the cliff that overlooked Beach City's ocean. The world turned bluer in the midst of her running. Clouds bloomed in the sky. She leaned her head against the base of the tree and wrapped her arms around herself.

Green Apatite cold not believe they had taken so long to fuse, even if it was an accident. The thoughts of fighting in battle, taking down enemies with a swift kick or a wrapping of the whip and celebrating a glorious victory. Homeworld wouldn't stand a chance.

A sliver spiked through her head, far worse than the last one. With a sucked in gasp, she clutched her head. "Argh! What the hell?!" she snarled. "Stars, are all first fusions like this? This blows!"

Her balance wavered, and she slipped from the branch. Green Apatite made a clumsy landing, gritting her teeth.

"This is supposed to be a good time, being me. Whatever's going up… up here, I guess," she mumbled, pointing at her head, "whatever, knock it off!"

Either not being listened to or outright ignored, another slash struck her head, burning hot red. She screamed out loud this time. "What's going on?! Please!"

Still lost as to what was the cause, she grunted. Her head was practically spinning now. Feeling lightheaded, she lurched forward, eyes shut. "Get your shit together!"

The ground underneath her vanished. Her head was now swimming and for a moment she thought she was falling into nothing. When her feet found the earth again, she straightened her posture. Her eyes grew. The scenery changed. No longer was she in the gorgeous green plains, but covered in darkness.

"Where… uh, this is… this is new," Green Apatite breathed out. "Getting a, eh, little weird here."

With nothing else to do, she tried walking around. As if a way out was within sight. Only one wasn't. Just emptiness. Which made her shiver, but also worried. She searched around as minutes rolled by for any sight of light, or any change of the sort. Nothing.

"What are you two doing?"

Colors blur through the darkness, and a rush of relief ran through her. Her pace quickened, but once the picture cleared up, she skidded to a stop. The area was dark and essentially lifeless. And it was cold, but she wondered if that was the reason as to why she was shivering.

"T-the kindergarten? But that's at such a far distance from where we were… how? Why am I here?" She glanced at the ground before her feet, then at the walls. The walls filled with holes. Gem shaped holes. Not too far away, she spotted a small one, far smaller than any of the others. It hit her. "Amethyst?"

An unsettling feeling brushed her teal skin, making her shake. She wrapped her arms around herself, but couldn't ignore the loneliness crashing through her head. This place was so painful to be around, but Green Apatite had no association with this place! What was she supposed to feel!?

"It's okay, it's okay," she muttered to herself, but she had no idea who she was telling this to. "There's nothing here. Besides, it's one of the best made kindergartens here, remember? So well kept and perfect minerals for gem making." An awkward chuckle, despite herself. "You've got nothing to be ashamed of. I can even take a look around, see if there's anything else around. I promise, though, everything's okay."

Though she didn't not buy her own words that much, she tried to walk forward. The unsettling air stayed, and Green Apatite tried hard to ignore the ominous feeling that created tsunamis in her stomach.

Another step in, something was beating and she stopped. No longer did the strikes of pain hit, but pain gradually erupted into her head. Green Apatite lost focus, eyesight blurry, and could only feel the pain in her head. Giving up on her travelling, she walked to the nearest rock wall and leaned against it. Her breathing grew heavy like lead.

"This is… this is fucked up! If this is one of those nightmares, waking up would be wonderful right now!" she sneered, but the pain did not lessen. Clutching her chest, Green Apatite fought against everything to keep her breathing under control. "Oh, stars, get it together." She turned around, clawing at the walls and scrunching her face. "It's okay, it's okay, it's okay."

She bent down onto her knees, but before she could shut her eyes, a shadow washed over her. Apatite's chest tightened, and she turned to the side. At the sight of her new guest, she recoiled in horror.

"Yellow Diamond?! Wh-what is she doing here?!" Green Apatite cried out.

Yellow Diamond was quiet, yet staring down at her. Green Apatite fought the tears in her eyes but lost.

"She's here, but… why? I-she-she's… WHAT IS GOING ON?!" Green Apatite shook her head. Two different thoughts raced through her head and they fell out of her mouth without her control. One was terrified, the other begged for answers but the first couldn't bring herself to say anything maybe she was too scared to but-

Yellow Diamond stepped forward. Green Apatite pressed her back further onto the wall, her whole body trembling.

"Don't… don't hurt any of them! Any of us!" She wished that she could shove her body into the wall, vanish from this place forever and hide away from what was staring right down at her. The tears freely flowed. "Oh, god, I can't beat her. I'm useless. I'm so useless and can't do a goddamn thing right! I'm sorry."

Then other voices flickered in the wind. Strangled noises that were likely voices but did not speak intelligible language. She caught some words, however, heard "wrong," "disturbing," "mess," and "parasites." They echoed among the walls.

The walls shook, rocks crumbling down overhead. Green Apatite shielded her head with her arms and ducked. She could hear the footsteps but wouldn't dare look up to see how close Yellow Diamond was. Her head felt heavy and sweat poured down her forehead, down her neck. Perspiration soaked her. Her chest tightened and gems didn't need to breathe, but at that moment, she felt like her breaths were gone. Like she was suffocating.

After what felt like eons, she was able to cry out through a croaky voice, "No… NO! PLEASE, DON'T!"

Everything vanished, faded into a lifeless void, then everything flashed a bright light.

Then Peridot felt the ground below her feet and opened her eyes. Tears burned her face. She wrapped herself into her arms, head bowed down and staring at the grass that brushed against her nose. Still, she shivered, the terror from the visions lingering.

She pulled her head up. They had returned to the field behind the beach. The sun was still rising. No kindergarten. No Yellow Diamond.

Her eyes wandered to her side, and a pang punched her stomach.

Amethyst was brushing her hair from her face, water at the edges of her eyes. Many expression rushed through her face. Confusion, concern, shock.

Then her eyes met Peridot's. Peridot was sure she shared the same horrified expression, but for different reasons. The tears continued falling in ugly bursts down her cheeks, the longer they stared. Peridot wondered what Amethyst's was thinking now, now that Peridot felt so exposed, but couldn't bring herself to ask.

"Are you guys okay?!"

Even worse, they weren't alone.

Steven rushed to their sides. Peridot recoiled, unable to utter a single word. "We could hear you guys from the Temple! Well, Green Apatite was screaming, and… when we found her, she was falling apart really slowly," Steven explained, worry aging his face. His shoulders shook. "It was terrifying."

Peridot doesn't respond. She glanced again at Amethyst, who was picking herself up. Garnet stood above her, arms crossed. Though Peridot couldn't catch Garnet's expression, she could tell it wasn't anything positive.

Amethyst, once on her feet, looked at Garnet, a heavy grimace on her face. "I know it looks bad, Garnet, but—"

"However you try to justify it, you two just weren't ready for this. I know she was excited, but now wasn't quite the time for her to arrive. I couldn't stop her, even though I wanted to, but for various reasons." Garnet's voice was stern and grave while she bore a glance down at Amethyst.

Amethyst, whose expression broke as Garnet spoke, bowed her head down. "I know."

"We-we-we didn't plan on fusing at all!" Peridot jumped up, sweating but somehow able to find her voice at last. Steven hopped away from her so she could approach Garnet. "It was an accident!"

Garnet was nodding, then opening her mouth to speak, but Steven interrupted her. "It's okay, Peridot. We understand. Some fusions can be tricky at times, that's all. We were just really worried!"

"It was an accident! A mistake! A stupid mistake!" At the edges of her eyes, tears surfaced.

Amethyst turned to her, her pupils small. "Peridot…" Her voice could not hide the hurt.

Peridot met her gaze and processed what she said, mentally cursing herself. Hurting Amethyst again, because of her dumb mouth! And this fusion thing lingered in her mind, and an awful feeling lurked in her stomach. Gems don't get sick normally, but she had a feeling she would somehow. Now the tears raced down her face, and no longer could she look at the three. She ran away.

"Peridot!" Garnet cried out.

Peridot didn't stop.

"W-wait!" Amethyst's cracked voice yelled out.

She ran after Peridot, leaving Steven and Garnet standing alone. Steven stepped forward, but Garnet placed a hand on his shoulder before he could run after them.

Steven's face had fallen when he looked up at her, eyes slightly damp. "Will they be okay?!"

Garnet sighed. "I hope so. But they need to go through this alone."

"They... probably have a lot to talk about." Steven thought over what Peridot had told him a few days ago, and figured that was just one thing of many that was bothering them. He rubbed his arm, head bowed.

Garnet shot a look over at where Peridot and then Amethyst ran off. She tried not to think of whatever possibilities could come from whatever they would do once they stopped running. "That, they do."


	7. Chapter 7

Peridot felt like she had done a lot of running just this morning. Throughout her body, she can feel all of that taking a toll. The adrenaline of the fusion had long since waned, replaced with an exhaustion that she was dragging her down. And like with Green Apatite, she had no clue as where she would wind up. Even with all of her time on Earth, she failed to gather memory of the extended geography. Let alone the one surrounding Beach City. If only.

The sound of footsteps behind her rose. Closer and closer. She gritted her teeth, with sweat pooling around her forehead. "Stop following me!" Peridot shouted.

"Only if you slow down!" Amethyst called from the back. Still approaching.

"No!"

Mere seconds later, she felt a sudden weight against her back, and her feet lost touch with the ground. Arms wrapped around her thin waist. Both of them flew midair for a split moment before they toppled to the ground. They had ended up on a small hill and tumbled downward until they reached the bottom. Peridot's head was spinning.

Once her head stopped spinning, Peridot gained focus. Amethyst seemed to have gained the upper hand and sat atop her. Though panting heavily, she straddled Peridot's legs with her own. Peridot's eyes shifted from Amethyst's hands clasped around her elbows to Amethyst's own annoyed gaze.

"If you could get off of me, Amethyst, that would be wonderful," Peridot jeered. She struggled to so much as sit up, but Amethyst's strength far dominated her own. She simply could not move.

"I needed to get you to stop somehow. 'Cause we need to talk about this."

"No, we don't. Now please get off!" she repeated through her teeth.

"C'mon, Peridot, there's no way to ignore all of this! I—you..." Amethyst sighed, her panting lessening. Her muscles slacked. "We both need to chill."

"I refuse to chill!"

Amethyst's eyebrows narrowed. "You can't just run away from this."

"I was actually doing that just fine until you stopped me," Peridot pointed out. Granted, all that running had begun taking a toll, but she had certainty that she could last another half mile before finally collapsing. As in, incredibly far away from Beach City! "So I can!"

"No, you can't!" Amethyst's voice boomed firmness, and Peridot's eyes focused on her. The Quartz's features softened as she added in a gentler tone, "Trust me."

"Then what am I supposed to do?" Peridot snapped, feeling her anger dissipate because deep down, she knew that she couldn't be too angry with Amethyst. That her barriers were breaking apart.

"I dunno, we sit down and talk about this. About what we saw."

Peridot's eyes grew. This time, she really looked at Amethyst. She hardly looked mad; if anything, merely tired. Peridot's stubbornness faded.

"I didn't want you to see any of that. It was embarrassing," she said, avoiding Amethyst's gaze. She worried about any tears escaping if she looked at her for too long.

Amethyst gave Peridot a quirk of a smile before getting off of her body. Resting on her knees, she extended a hand out. Peridot took it, their fingers interlocking as Amethyst pulled Peridot in a sitting position. For a minute, they simply sat beside one another, exchanging looks but failing to speak up.

Clearing her throat, Amethyst broke the tension. "There's nothing to be embarrassed about. You know that, right?"

"Well, I still feel that way," Peridot grumbled. She glanced down at her hand, and realizing they were still holding hands, pulled her own away from Amethyst's. "What happened, exactly?"

"I don't know. I'm not exactly an expert on fusions, but I guess when fusions aren't…" Amethyst looped her hands around as she struggled to find the words, "synced up or something or their emotions get too intense, the fusion reacts pretty badly."

Peridot stayed silent, wondering where in that vision those problems could have settled. Her thinking did not have to last long. Before she could say anything, however, Amethyst spoke up first.

"So was that, like, your nightmare? The one you were talking about?"

The truth was, no, some pieces were missing, but as if Peridot could bring that up. "For the most part. It certainly didn't happen in the kindergarten." Her gaze shifted to Amethyst. "That was yours, then."

Amethyst averted her gaze to the side. "Well… yeah, but I've dealt with that for years. It's nothing I'd worry about right now." When she glanced back at Peridot, her shy gaze sharpened. "But I can tell that whole Yellow Diamond thing is seriously messing with you. You can't tell me that everything's okay right now."

Peridot, through narrowed eyebrows, shot a glare at the ground.

"I know you're listening." Amethyst's voice was laced with a touch of anger.

A long silence lingered. The air felt cold.

"What do we do about this?" Peridot looked at her fingers. They couldn't drop this and fake happiness. Now that they both saw. They saw something, but the answer as to what exactly it was and what it meant still a mystery. Either way, this was one thing they could not leave be.

Amethyst sighed, pushing a bundle of hair away from her face. "Fusion isn't all that healthy when there are… secrets you're hiding from each other." She turned away and hissed under her breath. "It gets nasty fast. Not just the fusion, either."

She didn't need to clarify what else, exactly. The idea of her relationship with Amethyst hurting in the process made Peridot's body tighten. However, she caught the look in Amethyst's eyes, that glint of someone pondering. "So what are you thinking about?"

Amethyst blinked at Peridot before she looked back to the side. For a while, she said nothing. Then, she slapped her hands onto her knees and cleared her throat. "Right here, right now. No more secrets. We don't have to tell anyone else; it'll just be the two of us."

"Secrets?" Peridot squeaked.

Amethyst scooted closer to her. "I want you to talk to me about these things. Or, I want you to… want to talk to me about these things. I dunno, you know what I mean?" She gave Peridot an uncertain look, like she had trouble figuring out her own words.

"Well, talking to you wouldn't have made it go away."

"Okay, yeah, probably not," Amethyst sighed, "but it just… makes you feel better to let it all out to someone you completely trust. Doesn't that make sense?"

Peridot stared at Amethyst, processing what she said. And she realized something. "Okay, but that includes you, too."

"Huh?"

"I'm not going to say anything until you promise to tell me you'll talk to me whenever you need me… for something. I want you to trust me!" she exclaimed, her chest pounding.

Amethyst stared at her for a moment. Peridot couldn't quite put her finger on the expression. Her eyes were wide, mouth opened just slightly. When Amethyst let out a shaky breath, Peridot stopped. "Alright…" A small smile graced Amethyst's face. "Yeah, I promise." She leaned her head against Peridot's. The green gem stomach churned. "Man, I really screwed up that one."

"The... fusion?" You?!

"Hmm, yup." Amethyst's laugh was hollow. "I know the whole thing was an accident, but… but I liked it. It was also pretty fun. Well, for the most part."

Peridot pulled her head away from Amethyst's, though the distance between them was still severely lacking. "Amethyst, I want to clarify. I didn't mean it when I said it was a mistake. That was just me reacting negatively to the vision we had. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings, I swear!"

"It's cool." She shook her head. "It was not fun. I wish it was different. It could've been great." Amethyst's whispers brought breath onto Peridot's face, and Peridot struggled with every code in her being to fight off the shivers.

"You think so?" Peridot's pitch rose.

"Totally."

The memories of their fusion resurfaced, from the thrill to the terror. She shut her eyes. "It's my fault. I'm sorry."

"It's not, though. It's not something you should apolo—"

"But I am sorry!" Peridot interrupted in a clear, in-control voice. Her body directed itself away from Amethyst's. "The fusion broke apart because I was holding back and not syncing with you properly. This isn't me trying to take the blame. This is fact."

"But it was your first fusion! I should've been more careful with, I dunno, guiding you through it or something." Amethyst groaned, then distracted herself with pulling little pieces of grass. "Garnet said she couldn't stop Green Apatite, but maybe I should've."

"That doesn't mean it should've been as bad as it was," Peridot pointed out with crossed arms. "I doubt most first fusions are like that."

"If I stopped her, maybe it wouldn't have been."

Peridot growled, patience snapping apart. "Then maybe we're both to blame here! How about that? We both screwed up the whole thing, and now we're here."

Despite herself, Amethyst let out a quick snicker. With a shake of her head, she said, "If you insist. I was just a bad first fusion for ya, that's all."

"You say that as if I would want it to be with any of the other gems!"

Amethyst looked as if she had the wind knocked right out of her body. Peridot stopped, thought over the words that came out of her mouth, and regretted them. Not because they were wrong (they clearly weren't), but now wasn't the time! Flushing, and before Amethyst could toss a remark out, Peridot added in haste, "Maybe talking about that vision would help us come to a conclusion as to what exactly happened."

Still appearing confused and lost beyond belief, Amethyst didn't press on. "Uh, alright. Where exactly do you wanna start?" She shrugged as if with uncertainty. When Peridot was not immediately responsive, she scratched her nose and again scooted herself closer to Peridot. "What about Yellow Dumpster—"

"Dumpster?"

Amethyst's smirk shined before her face fell back into a more serious countenance. "Are you really that scared of her?"

Peridot considered her response for a long time, even drawing out another worried look from Amethyst. Amethyst waited with patience this time, however. Peridot cast her eyes over her hands, which rested on her lap. With a collapsed sigh, she said, "The worst part of the dream wasn't even Yellow Diamond."

"Then what was?" Amethyst persisted emphasizing her words. Peridot stayed quiet, but Amethyst leaned in just a touch to say, "Whatever it was couldn't be that bad."

Peridot shut her eyes to say it, despite worrying that she'd see it all over again. "Shattered."

"Huh?"

"You were shattered!" Peridot's gaze, upon opening her eyes, sharpened on Amethyst, and her hands tightened into almost painfully held fists. "Your shards were in this small pile on the ground, and from what I could guess, Yellow Diamond was responsible."

Amethyst looked stupefied. "O-oh…" was all she could utter.

"And the worst part was that I couldn't do anything about it. They were just… there!" Peridot gestured to the ground in front of her as if the tiny hill of purple remains rested there. Fingers digging into her palm, she buried her hands under her armpits. "That was why I was at the Temple at such an odd time of the day."

"What, you were… seeing if it happened?" Amethyst said at a slow pace, as if still processing everything said.

"Yes!" Peridot exclaimed, her voice shuddering. Her voice lowered as she continued. "Or… no, because I had figured it was a dream. It was impossible, all things considering. The facts didn't add up, but…" Her body slouched. "I wanted to be certain."

"Peridot, I... I had no idea. I—" Amethyst cut herself off.

Peridot wiped under her visor in fear of staining the material with tears (among other reasons). She directed her head away from Amethyst, unable to see her reaction. Recounting her dreams only made her feel like they were still there, in her head, waiting to see all of that all over again. Whatever Amethyst had expected to come out of this, Peridot doubted this was part of it.

"Tch," Amethyst uttered after a few long moments, voice a mite chipper, "like I'm going down that easily. I'm not gonna let Yellow D get rid of me that easily. Let me at her, P-Pod. I'll take her on."

Something in Peridot snapped. The pain of her memories practically exploded, and she jumped up to her feet as she shouted, "Are you nuts?!" She waved at Amethyst with one hand, the other firmly at her side. "Do you have any idea what you are up against here? What we're up against?"

Amethyst's mood shifted, and the grin she wore might as well have been smacked away. Raising a hand in defense, she said, "Whoa, P-dot, I—"

"Say we defeat the Cluster—"

"C'mon, we're totally beating that thing!"

Peridot rolled her eyes. "Even so, Yellow Diamond will soon notice that Earth is still active on Homeworld's star maps, that it's still not… well, blown up!" Peridot threw her arms out. "She'll be furious beyond anything I've ever heard of."

"Worse than when you called her a clod?"

Peridot shot her a burning glare.

"Hey, it was still awesome, but uh..." Amethyst averted her gaze from Peridot. "Continue."

Shaking her head, Peridot restarted her train of thought. "She's going to find out, and you saw how she clearly despises Earth and wants to get rid of it. I highly doubt she'll just ignore it. She could send an army over here, or-or find other ways to destroy this planet!"

"I guess you got a point." Amethyst's reluctant response barely came out above a murmur.

"The idea of her coming here to destroy it—and very likely us…" Peridot shuddered. "What if she does?"

"Well, I mean… I don't know," Amethyst replied, exasperated and appearing so, at that. "What am I supposed to say? I'm not good at the whole planning thing. Garnet's better with that stuff."

Peridot's eyebrows slanted down. "Are you even aware of what the Diamond's are capable of? We retreat into our gemstones whenever our forms are too weak to hold and require time to heal. Except the Diamonds. Not once has a Diamond poofed—ever!" Peridot jumped a few inches into the air, then clenched her fists. "They're too strong, too powerful. And if we're captured, we're as good as harvested, if we're lucky! And this planet is probably going to end up as nothing more than a bunch of debris drifting through space!"

"Do you seriously think I don't worry about that stuff, too!?" Amethyst thundered suddenly, standing up to meet Peridot at eye level.

She had been looking at Amethyst, but failed to really look at her. Only now did she see the rush of emotions shifting through Amethyst's face, likely formed as she spoke. Anger wrinkled her eyes, and Peridot shut her mouth. She took a step back.

"Dealing with your precious Homeworld hasn't been easy for any of us! Ever since we had to fight Lapis when she took the whole dang ocean away. It all started there, and it's been pure garbage ever since!" Her head bowed. "All I want to do is live on Earth and maybe kick Gem mutant buts every once in a while. Not have to deal with all this war and rebellion junk that I wasn't even part of!"

"So, what, you want to ignore all of that?" Peridot snapped with some toxicity to her words.

Amethyst gnashed at her teeth for a curt second. "Well, no, but…" She hissed. "Ignoring what Homeworld throws at us won't make it go away. And it's terrifying for us, too! But we gotta try not to let it get to our heads—'cause we can't!" She gradually approached Peridot, whose feet were glued to the grass. "We deal with all of that somehow to protect our home." At the final emphasis, she gestured not just to herself, but Peridot.

Peridot stopped her recoil, and she crossed her arms firmly. "You mean your home."

Anger blinked away from Amethyst's face, replaced with shock. "I mean, it's yours, too."

"It's better than nothing, I suppose," Peridot scoffed. "But without Homeworld…" She sighed. "I have nowhere else to go."

"Neither do we!" Amethyst cried out, arms spread out as if to gesture to the world surrounding them. "I mean, I sure as heck know nothing about Homeworld. I've been told stuff about it, I guess, but I don't… even feel anything about it. Without Earth, I… I don't have anything. I don't—" she breathed out heavily, "I don't have anywhere else to go. None of us do, honestly, but I was made here, Peridot! I've been here ever since I came out of my hole in the ground!" Through gritted teeth, Amethyst pulled her head away from Peridot's gaze.

Peridot nearly jumped at the sound of sniffling. "Amethyst…"

Amethyst stuck her hand out, palm facing Peridot. "But you know what, P-dot?" Her head snapped directly at Peridot, who flinched at the change of tone and the seriousness lurking within her eyes. "It isn't just about where you live. Home is about who you're with. We've always had each other, even when things got really awful and we got into huge fights and all kinds of bad stuff like that. That's what home is."

Peridot considered those words and nodded. "Your company—as well as the rest of the Crystal Gems—has been more pleasing than anything I've experienced in Homeworld."

"I guess, but if you're really not totally comfortable here, did…" Amethyst did not look convinced. "Did we do something wrong?"

Peridot thought her chest would explode. "What? No no no!" She shook her hands in front of Amethyst violently, and Amethyst's frown wiped from her face, replaced with a straight lipped expression. Peridot began reaching out to her… but stopped. Though they were closer than before, she couldn't bring herself to initiate contact. "I want to fully understand what Earth has to offer. And you're helping me with that. I love seeing all the differences to this world and spending time with you while doing so." Her rambling, brimmed with excitement as she spoke, dimmed. "But to completely embrace it as a new home—" Words failed her, and she stumbled with the next part.

"You're... not exactly there yet." Amethyst beat her to the punch.

"It feels surreal sometimes." She glanced up at the sky, which looked so clear and so nice. A part of her wished they could enjoy the view rather than argue because it all made her feel so bitter and upset. The other part was still fumbling in her head as this argument continued. She sat down and folded her hands nicely in her lap. "Realizing that I can't go back to Homeworld, considering… you know." She paused, brushing the back of her hand. "I miss it."

"Seriously?" Amethyst could not veil her shock.

Peridot gave Amethyst a look to say 'of course.' "How can I not? What if you were forced away from Earth, and couldn't find any way?"

Amethyst, as if she did not anticipate the question back, took a step away as she sorted through her thoughts. Then she shook her head. "Yeah… yeah, I suppose." As she plopped herself onto the grass, she continued in disbelief, "Do you really miss all of that, though? Every time I hear about it, it makes me never want to get near that place!"

"It was all I had for years." Her eyes wandered back to the sky. She wondered what was happening on Homeworld right at that moment. What the Diamonds were doing. Her Diamond (ex-Diamond, she reminded herself) was doing, whether she was ordering her people around or searching her files in hopes of seeing Earth wiped from the maps. What project her fellow Peridots were working on and how they were doing (besides trying to outdo each other, of course).

"Now you have us." Amethyst's voice softened. A hand pressed on Peridot's shoulder. When she gazed back at Amethyst, the latter shrugged.

"And they may try to destroy you—us. All of this." Peridot shut her eyes and grumbled to herself. She dug her fingers into her hair. "It's… immensely complicated."

Amethyst's hand remained on her shoulder, and she leaned in toward Peridot, who was staring forward. "Hey, I get it, alright? You're scared. It's okay to be. But you don't gotta hide it from us! 'Cause we all understand how you feel." She hesitated, then added, "Even if we don't… we'll be there for you."

Peridot stared at her for the longest time. The lack of distance between them was noticeable, and something about the way Amethyst looked at her with such sincerity made her stomach knot up. She turned away. "Homeworld was all I had," she admitted in a small voice, "and I can't even go back."

"And that sucks, but... you're here now. And we won't let Homestink ruin that."

Peridot shook her shoulder, and Amethyst's hand slipped from her arm. "What if they come back for us? To destroy the planet?"

"We'll think of something." Amethyst tossed her a casual shrug, her hand now messing with her hair.

"I'd much prefer a plan, to be honest." Peridot dug a toe into the grass.

"I know, but eh. Sometimes a plan can go wrong, you know?"

"What about multiple?"

Amethyst smirked despite herself, and snickered under her breath. "Stop. Look, I just kinda… go with it. Follow the funky flow—" She made an odd wavy motion with her arms, but stopped both while looking at Peridot's confused face and to add, "Steven's words, not mine. But still!"

"That sounds like a disaster waiting to happen!" Peridot exclaimed, voice mixed with shock and exasperation.

"Gotta try something, because…" She sighed. "Thinking too much about the future can be a real pain. It ruins the fun you're having now. Like… literally right now."

Peridot felt warmth across her hand, and looked down. Amethyst held her hand atop her own. When their eyes locked, Peridot felt lost for a moment. The sun shined, cast a glow on Amethyst like earlier today but this time, Amethyst was looking at her and she wondered if the purple gem noticed her staring. Peridot gulped. "But what if… what if Yellow Diamond—"

"Peridot."

Peridot shivered. "Amethyst."

Amethyst leaned in, and Peridot felt that warmth from her hand spread to the rest of her body. "No matter what'll happen, you've got us. And we'll work things out. We always do."

The conviction in her voice nearly made Peridot shudder once more. Instead, she said numbly, "All of us?"

Amethyst nodded, flashing a grin. "Yup. And you can, like, trust m—" Her gaze faltered, and she flushed very lightly for a quick moment before turning back. "Er, us with… well, anything, for the most part." Though she continued to smile, it was a much softer one, one filled with so much emotion and beauty that Peridot could not stop staring with an near dumbfounded look.

Peridot shifted her body so while sitting, their bodies were directed at one another. Yet she made sure their hands were still touching. Amethyst looked confused but said nothing. Peridot's fingers shook as she contemplated. Her train of thought stopped, glancing at the grass tickling her feet.

"Peridot? Are you—?"

Peridot cut the gap between them and leaned forward. She slipped her arms under Amethyst's shoulders, hands curled into fists against Amethyst's back. Her chin secured itself neatly onto the other gem's shoulder, light colored hair brushing her nose. Peridot felt her tense up for a short second, almost having to fight back upset—what if now wasn't the appropriate time for hugging? Then Amethyst returned the embrace, and Peridot felt large arms tighten around her. She once more felt warm throughout, but it was different from the previous two times. It brought a welcoming joy, and she sighed.

"That's more like it," Amethyst muttered into her ear with equal content.

When they pulled apart, Peridot already missed that embracing warmth that had vanished along with the contact. She smiled at Amethyst, who grinned back. "Hey, no crying while I'm around."

Peridot blinked and only then noticed the tears rolling down her face. Face burning, she tilted her head aside. "I'm not crying." She didn't know why she said it, because everything certainly pointed to this.

Amethyst chuckled. "Yeah, sure, nerd," she teased, but she leaned in to brush a finger at a tear on Peridot's cheek. Peridot flinched but did not move away. Rather than pull away, Amethyst cupped the side of Peridot's face.

"You gonna be alright?"

Peridot smiled and nodded. They sat in silence for a minute, and she rubbed her hand against the one on her cheek.

"Think we should head back?" Amethyst offered. Her hand left Peridot's face, and Peridot's hand landed in her lap. She grinned but it wasn't filled with much confidence. "Since we kiiiinda left Steven and Garnet at a bad time. Pretty awkward, actually."

Peridot struggled not to pout and complain that no, she did want to go back. That she wanted time with Amethyst all to herself, time that wasn't consumed with yelling and just feeling awful.

So she stopped fighting it. "Or perhaps we can spend a bit more time out here. I doubt they'll be too concerned, considering Garnet has her future vision." Peridot added a hint of mocking to her tone at those last words. "They'll figure out that everything has gotten better at this point."

A wide smirk grew on Amethyst's face. "Well, if you say so…"

Peridot glanced to the sky. With a sigh through her nose, she lay back entirely on the grass. It felt cold against her back. Her eyes wandered across the blue sky and the white streaks that were the clouds.

"What'chu thinking about now?" Amethyst asked, laying down beside her. Her hair splayed out all around her.

"Just... thinking," Peridot explained. She shrugged. Her mind was still reeling, as if running and not knowing now was the time to stop. She glanced up at the sky, but the stars were not out at the moment. The glorious stars that twinkled and shined, creating a show despite being so far away. And maybe, just maybe, one of them was part of Homeworld.

Amethyst looked around, making a noise implying deep concentration. Peridot watched her until her face perked up, and she pointed up. "Oh, see that cloud right there?" With her available hand, she wrapped her fingers around Peridot's. "That one right there… looks like a duck... wearing a cowboy hat."

Peridot followed the position where Amethyst pointed and observed it. She stared up with a doubtful look. "What?"

"C'mon! The clouds, they can sorta be shaped like other things. Just look! That's the bill, and it's got that dumb hat on its head..."

Once she finally spotted the cloud, this expression did not faltered. "But it's not the same. Ducks have two legs, correct? That one only has one!"

Amethyst let out a noise under her breath. She said nothing a few moments before she felt something weight down against her hair. "Don't think too much about it, Per-bear," Amethyst muttered into her hair. She inhaled, then let out a long breath as she added, "Just have fun with it."

Peridot glanced at her, and Amethyst was looking square at her. It was with a most tender look that send Peridot's brain reeling. Peridot's throat tightened, but all the tension within her lessened when Amethyst giggled.

She smiled and looked back up. "Then perhaps... up there." She pointed. "I see a Coccinellidae."

"Can I get a less nerdy translation, Peridot?"

"You also call them ladybugs."

"... Oh, yeah, I see it."

They lasted an hour staring at the morning sky, hand-in-hand, and finding things and animals and everything in between and Amethyst swore she saw the shape of Peridot's head, but Peridot failed to see it. Peridot was smiling, and when she looked at Amethyst, as was she.


	8. Chapter 8

**Stargazing**

 **Eight**

 **FINAL**

Peridot and Amethyst eventually returned to the Temple. Mostly because they had lost track of time, and had only realized how long they had been sitting in the grass when Peridot interrupted the absolute peace and quiet, offering a hand and suggesting they return to the Temple.

"Five more minutes, Peri. C'mooooooon," Amethyst had begged in a voice that nearly made Peridot relent and sit back down for another few hours. Nearly.

To none of their surprise, upon their return, Steven hurried to their side first, with Garnet and Pearl at the counter. He asked shyly if everything was better. Not okay, but better.

"Snnk, geez, Steven, just 'cause we ran away after some sort of bad experience, you don't think we'd be okay?" Amethyst commented with a teasing glint in her eye.

Steven just chuckled awkwardly. Peridot added, "There's nothing to be concerned about now, I assure you. We're doing fine now."

"That's good," Steven said, with a noticeable stress off his shoulders.

"Glad to see you two are doing better," Garnet said as she and Pearl walked toward them.

Pearl clasped her palms in front of her stomach. "Steven and Garnet told me what happened. Well, not everything, obviously. It sounds like you two went through a lot, so we can schedule the drilling for tomorrow rather than today."

Peridot sighed from relief, remarking that that seemed like more than a fair deal. With the plans set for the next day, and after a headache of a morning, a more peaceful day did not sound like the worst possible thing at the moment. Pearl just nodded.

No one decided to comment on them holding hands, _still_ holding hands since they got up. Not even when Peridot and Amethyst glanced down at their interlocked hands and, as if only now realizing what they were doing, pulled their hands away. Both of them blushed, gazes turned from one another. No one said anything about this, either.

Everyone eventually dispersed and left them be. The room emptied as Garnet and Steven went outside and Pearl escaped to her room. Amethyst took Peridot's hand again, bringing her closer. "So what're your plans for the rest of the day? Watchin' your camp shows again?"

It sounded as if Amethyst was teasing her, but Peridot thought over the idea for a split second. "With a free day, perhaps I could rewatch season one of Camp Pining Hearts. It's been quite some time before I first watched it, so I'm rather curious about any foreshadowing I may have missed."

Amethyst smiled weakly, but it faded when she asked, "So the barn? You don't wanna stay here?"

"I don't have anywhere to sleep! And you can't make me go back into that room! Never again!" Peridot pointed at the bathroom.

Amethyst began saying something, but cut herself off. With a shrug, she restarted. "Maybe we can do something to the Temple. You can have it all customized in whatever way you want—probably have some nerdy, techie stuff or, uh, uh, something! Whatever you want! The barn's just super boring, that's all."

"I much prefer it there," Peridot defended, crossing her arms. "Certainly an improvement on Steven's bathroom," she added in a dull tone that exuded annoyance. Memories of being trapped in that accursed room made her cringe. She leaned in to whisper in a conspiratorial way, "I've seen things, Amethyst."

"Say no more," Amethyst chuckled. She stepped back, hand slipping from Peridot's. Brushing her hair back, she added, "I'm gonna, uh, swing back into my place. Maybe we can chat later? I'll come by the barn, if you want."

"Um, sure," Peridot said with a slow nod.

Amethyst hesitated, eyes briefly meeting Peridot's. Her hand rose, but she did not say another word. Rather, she turned, and the door to her room opened. She vanished inside and left Peridot by her lonesome and standing at the doorway.

And suddenly, being alone at the barn did not entice Peridot. Not yet. Stars, being alone _in this room_ wasn't all that great. Glancing at the warp pad behind her, she stepped over it and exited the house.

With a sigh, she stepped onto the sand of the beach. It tickled her feet and sank with every step made. There was no material like this on Homeworld. Everything was so smooth, metallic, and lifeless. Peridot dipped to her knees, one hand scooping into the sand. The grains fought to escape her fingers, and as she raised her hand, she watched the tan matter cascade between her appendages. Despite this, it felt so soft and delicate.

So many grains, useless alone, but billions of them created surface. Astounding.

With a turn, she blinked. A bit farther in the distance, she spotted a silver shine that just barely caught in the reflection of the descending sun. With a quick stride toward the object, she picked it up.

Her tape recorder. Forgotten sometime earlier that day. Tucking it securely under her arm, she walked further off. Maybe if she kept walking, she could find the right thing to say into the recorder. After an… eventful morning, she would've thought that her mind would be racing with so many trains of thought igniting all at once. Enough so that she would be talking a mile a minute into the recording device.

But no. No, she had nothing to say. Not now, at least.

She came to the part of the beach with the logs and familiar memories. Her whole body tingled, and her eyes grazed to the music device not too far from the fallen tree logs. The device had long since turned off, leaving the air music-less.

With a sudden burst of frustration, she gave the music box a swift kick. Crossing her arms firmly, she watched it tilt back into the sand with a lackluster thud. Sending it a dagger-filled stare, however, did not provide her much satisfaction.

Peridot turned around, and two figures sat in the grass, their backs turned from her. They didn't see her, but she did see _them_ , and ran toward Steven and Garnet. Lights blinked in the air, but the source was not visible. Once she made her way toward them, Garnet was the first to see her.

"Hello, Peridot." She smiled slightly.

Steven looked over his shoulder, then twirled his whole body around in Peridot's direction. "Hey, Peridot! How're you feeling?"

"Alright," was her blunt respond. She sat down beside them, glaring into the grass. Lights bloomed from the blades every few seconds.

"Since when do lights just appear out of nowhere?" Peridot asked, squinting. "Are they some sort of... miniature floating light devices or something?"

Steven chuckled. "No, no, they're bugs. They're called fireflies. See? If you look closely, they're just little bugs, but sometimes, their butts light up."

He leaned down into the grass, chin barely brushing the ground. Peridot mimicked his position opposite to him, watching a bug sit on a blade of grass. A few seconds later, the backside of the bug lit up a bright yellow, illuminating a small radius around itself.

"A bug that has its own life source," Peridot noted to herself, then hummed at the concept. "Interesting." She looked at Steven, then noticed something occupying the space beside him. She picked the glass jar and realized that a few of these light bugs scuttled across the glass. She glared at the container. "And you capture them in these glass containers?"

Steven tilted his head as he clearly had a moment to think. "Well, yeah. I don't know _why_ people do it. I guess it's fun to see all the bugs light up inside. Though you can't keep them inside for too long."

"Why not?"

"They're not meant to be kept in jars for too long. They're supposed to be free, ya know?" Steven shrugged, then he paused. "It doesn't harm them or anything, but we don't make them stay in there for too long."

Peridot nodded to herself. She spent some time watching Steven play around with the fireflies. He let them walk around his hand, caught them in the jar, even asked Peridot if she wanted to hold one in her hand. With one on the back of his hand, he brought their hands together until the insect trekked onto hers. Its backside lit up before lifting itself into the air.

Peridot sat down beside Garnet, who had said little while Peridot kept Steven company. Peridot's gaze met Garnet's briefly, before she turned back to the ground.

"I'm not upset with what happened with Green Apatite, if you're concerned," Garnet responded, though Peridot had not said anything in the first place.

Peridot stole a look at her for a split second before turning back to the bugs buzzing inside the jar. "I'm not," she grumbled, though her face betrayed her by blushing.

Garnet grinned, catching her expression more so than her words. "I think she has a time to make a proper appearance… but not quite yet."

Peridot blinked. "Well, when?!"

"Can't say. There are possibilities, a lot pointing to a few major points in time," Garnet explained. Then she smirked. "Besides, there's no fun in ruining the surprise."

"Which one would you say is the closest date?" Peridot asked, trying to hold back how desperate she felt to know the answer. A part of her wondered if it would be at a date closer than she figured, but a chuckle from above pulled her from her train of thought.

"It's not that easy to get it out of me, Peridot."

Peridot crossed her arms firmly. A bug flew in front of her face, casting a yellow glow against her green skin. With a blink, it vanished.

Another part of her… _worried_ that it would be closer than she figured. A very small part that she wanted to shake away. She glared at the ground, gripping at the ground that she realized wasn't sand but actual dirt and grass. She made annoyed sounds as she brushed off the earth's minerals from her fingers.

"Whatever path you walk on all depends on your own choices… and Amethyst's."

Peridot flinched at Garnet's next words of advice, and bowing her head to the grass momentarily, she mulled them over. When she picked her head back up, she nodded. "I understand." She stood up. "I think I'll be going back to the barn now."

"You sure? You can stay with us," Steven offered.

"No, but... thank you," Peridot added, to sound less dismissive of Steven's request.

Steven held out the jar filled with a small amount of insects flitting inside. "Take them to the barn with you. Maybe you can have some bug friends to keep you company." He beamed.

"Thank you," she replied again, taking the jar. She glanced at the bugs inside for a moment before adding, "I'll be sure to set them free, as well."

Steven grinned at that, and both he and Garnet bid her goodbye. Peridot, still with the recorder in her grasp, took that and the jar toward the Temple.

At the beach in front of the house, however, she stopped. Grumbling to herself, she felt that train of thought going and going, and _now…_ now she knew she had to say something.

Firstly, she untwisted the jar and released the fireflies. They took their time but eventually escaped and started dancing in the air. They blinked as she took out the recorder, as if some forms of odd companions while she thought.

Sitting down, she pressed _record_ on the recorder and said what was on her mind, lights flickering around her head.

Peridot was pounding on the Temple door. Did this door even work like that? She had yet to actually ask about how this door that accessed several different rooms functioned. Only one way to find out. She even yelled out, "Amethyyyyyyst!"

The door slid open much quicker than Peridot predicted, with Amethyst sneering on the other side. "Yeesh, P-dot, how 'bout a little louder?"

"I just can't believe that worked."

Amethyst chuckled. "Yeah, these doors are weird. What're you up to, anyway? Thought you were watchin' your TV shows." She leaned against the doorway.

Peridot said nothing. Rather, she took out her recorder from behind her back and held it out. Amethyst gave her a weird look, shook her head and muttered something like "Ah, geez." Before Peridot could start the recorded message, took the recorder from Peridot.

"Wh-Hey!" Peridot shouted.

"Nu-uh. Just spill, Peri-dough," Amethyst said, crossing her arms. "If you have something to say, just tell me. _Then_ you can have this back." She smirked.

"I'll have you know I worked hard on that." Peridot pouted. "Can't you just listen to it?"

Amethyst sighed. "I'd rather you just tell me to my face, that's all. I don't want to listen to some dumb recording to hear you talk. I mean, what else do you have to say that we already haven't talked about before?"

Peridot grumbled to herself, admittedly wishing she could swiftly grab the recorder from Amethyst's grasp and probably run away to try again later in the future. Yet as Amethyst stood there, leaning and waiting and tossing the recorder in the air, Peridot felt that idea fade away. All that planning, and she simply could not let it all be for nothing! And she remembered what Garnet told her.

"Would you like to stay with me at the barn? For tonight, at least," Peridot added in a hurry, realizing she spoke at a rapid pace. Did Amethyst even catch her question?

Amethyst's eyes grew. That was a firm yes. "Really?"

Peridot's brow quirked. "Is something wrong with that? Aside from the fact that the barn is 'boring', of course." Peridot added air quotes, her tone laced with mock. She could not help but grin.

"Well, we could always spice it up a bit." Amethyst shook her shoulders, similar to a dance style. When she stopped, she continued, "But yeah, sounds fun. Let's go right now!"

Despite it being Peridot's request, Amethyst was still the one to grab Peridot's wrist and essentially drag her to the warp pad feet away from them. Her hand still latched onto Peridot's wrist as the bright blue lights guided them back to the barn within seconds.

The drill rested on the grass just outside the entrance to the barn. All process was completed some time ago, and at most, Peridot and Pearl had gathered tests to see that its uses would function properly. Until the very next day, it would lay on the ground as nothing more than a decoration piece.

"Lookin' pretty good," Amethyst said.

"We worked hard on it, so I would hope so."

Amethyst approached it, eyes flashing with mischief. "Hey, we should take this baby out for a test run."

"What? No!" Peridot's eyes bulged out, and she ran after Amethyst. Amethyst stopped and turned to her, and Peridot stood in front of the drill. She tapped it. "It's be too risky to try and test its functions now. We don't know how much endurance it can take while drilling underground."

Amethyst rolled her eyes, kicking the dirt. "Fiiiine." She let a pause linger, eyes on the dirt. Then she spoke up again, eyes grazing over Peridot. "But about the whole recorder thing… did you really just wanna ask if I wanted to stay over?"

"No." Peridot hesitated, feeling an uneasy sense in her body. "I wanted… to talk about Green Apatite."

Amethyst flinched, visibly discomforted. She rubbed her neck. "I mean, we talked a bunch about what happened with her. Is there really anything we missed or something?"

Peridot caught something in Amethyst's eyes. Couldn't describe it, but nonetheless, she realized that it wouldn't be discussed unless Peridot remained insistent. "Yes, and I'm sure you want to know, too." Amethyst blinked with surprise at her sternness, but Peridot continued. "About Green Apatite… coming back, that is."

"Oh." Amethyst's usual playful tone had long since vanished. She now sounded softer, quieter. She shrugged, eyes falling to the ground. "Uh, yeah, I guess I was kinda thinking about it a bit."

"Green Apatite has plenty of potential, being a fusion between the two of us and all," Peridot said, wearing a knowing grin. "So I would hate to see all of that be wasted."

"Heh, true. She was pretty cool, ya gotta admit that." Amethyst's grin returned, but her face fell as quickly as her excitement had returned, and she leaned away. "There's a but in there, though, isn't there?"

Peridot's hands clenched. "It's just…" She sighed, realizing that words were failing her. _If only she had her recorder._ She briefly shot a look at Amethyst. "I'm not sure. It's complicated to explain."

"Fusions aren't always so bad like that, ya know. I mean, just look at Garnet and you've seen Opal, too. For a bit, I guess. She's pretty great." Amethyst walked to Peridot's side. "It doesn't have to be a bad experience."

"I'm aware."

"Yeah," Amethyst muttered. After a painfully silent moment, she threw her head back, letting out a loud groan that nearly made Peridot jump a foot into the air. "You don't have to, like, _immediately_ be okay with fusion. I get it. You can just tell me; I'm not going to be… upset or anything." She frowned. "It just sucks that I sorta ruined your first experience with it."

Peridot's eyebrows narrowed. "Oh, please, that was just as much my fault as yours. So there's no need to apologize."

Amethyst smiled.

"And I want to fuse again someday. With you."

"Well, what about the others? I'm sure Garnet would love to teach you allllll about fusion."

Peridot noticed that Amethyst was avoiding her gaze. She stood in front of Amethyst, eyes focused on her. "I'm sure experiencing fusion with the others will be interesting when the time comes, but I want to understand fusion with you."

"Ah, geez, Peri, I'm blushing." Peridot was fairly close to her, their faces not too far apart, so she did not need to be told this. Their eyes locked on one another again, but Amethyst broke the spell with a shake of her head. "So, yeah, if we're done with all this, why don't we watch some TV?"

Peridot grinned. "That'd be great! We could watch Camp Pining Hearts—unless, that is, you have other recommendations." She flustered at Amethyst's look that read 'Don't even think about it'. Perhaps she could get Amethyst interested in a clearly inventive form of entertainment _someday._

Amethyst hummed in thought. "How 'bout that other show, _Armed and Precious_? You remember that one, right? We watched it a few days back. There's, like, what… a bunch more episodes to catch up on. I think Steven's watched it all with Connie so it can still just be the two of us." Like a flick of a switch, Amethyst's playfulness returned. She leaned against Peridot at the last few words. "Plus, I think she lent him a DVD that I can steal from the Temple."

"Oh, of course. I remember those two human characters who simply failed to see how much they meant to one another. Stupid humans…" she grumbled.

"Oh, yeah," Amethyst said, as if only now remembering. "They have some stuff to work on. But hey, they're in the middle of this whole… rebellion thing. _Stuff's complicated, man_!"

"Then perhaps they can make it less complicated."

"If only it were that easy."

Amethyst returned as quickly as she vanished to retrieve the DVD for her show. Once she inserted the disc into the DVD slot for Peridot's television, she slumped onto the floor in front of the couch, exhaling a sigh of relief. She grinned at Peridot, who sat down beside her crossing her legs. "So where we at?"

They started the show several episodes in. Peridot quickly fell into the same routine that she participated in while watching _Camp Pining Hearts._ She gradually scooted closer and closer to the television until Amethyst dragged her back to her side, shouting, "No blocking the TV, P-dot! I wanna watch, too!" After some complaining during the long, _long_ intro, Peridot eventually caved into simply sitting in front of the couch.

Almost ten episodes later, however, Peridot could barely contain herself. A beloved side character sacrificed her own life to let the others survive, and another was revealed to betray their own group. Peridot even noticed Amethyst's own intrigue of the show. She started complaining at the TV when the slower moments replaced the action scenes, wanting something to "explode already!"

Once the introduction for the two-part finale, Peridot reached for the remote to pause the television. Amethyst shot her a confused glance. "How are we almost finished? There are so many conflicts to be resolved. Leader M's arc, the whole reason behind the attacks, Lacey and Abbey's relationship, now with _Marcy_ in the mix! They can't be all finished within two episodes. Camp Pining Hearts usually has everything brought together in one finishing conclusion—often with a cheesy song about teamwork and friendship somewhere at the end. They aren't that great," Peridot admitted with a grimace.

Amethyst rolled her eyes at the mention of Peridot's favorite program. "You don't get all the answers and stuff in fifteen episodes. That's just no fun. I think there's another season that's supposed to come out... next summer?"

Peridot slumped against the couch. "Well, let's hope I'm not feeling disappointed until then."

"Alright, then!" Amethyst angled her body toward Peridot. "What do you think will happen, Miss Everything Should Go My Way?"

Peridot stopped her intention of taking the remote. "Well—"

"Okay, _excluding_ Lacey and Abbey smooootchin'!" Amethyst pointed a finger in the air, laughing.

Peridot glared at Amethyst, but Amethyst just flashed her a smirk. After a moment, Peridot nonetheless followed with entering a long explanation of her theories concerning the show. Her back pressed against the couch as she leaned back and explained Leader M's continuing arc and all she could figure out of the smoke monster. That familiar burst of pride swelled within Peridot's chest, because _of course_ she paid attention to every detail. As if she would do anything less.

Peridot eventually realized how long she was going on for and looked down. Amethyst was close to leaning against Peridot's shoulder, eyes watching over Peridot with this sparkle in them. "Look at you, smarty. You've been paying attention. I know I missed some of that stuff. Okay, _finale time_!"

Amethyst started up the show once more. There was a battle in the square of the large town. The Initiation faced an army of mind-controlled people. Peridot noted how this was _nothing_ like Camp Pining Heart's season one finale. It had much more going on than a scavenger hunt in the forest at night.

Once the battle ended, the town was labeled as a safe space. Lacey had been injured and rested in an infirmary with a broken leg. Abbey promised, at her side, to take care of her. In a clearly intimate moment, Peridot sneaked a glance at Amethyst. They exchanged looks, grinning at one another. The episode ended with Lacey and Abbey smiling, then going to the rest of the group staring at the new, safe city with darkness shrouding the mountains. The screen blanked.

"Uh, next season when?!" Amethyst said in a joking voice.

"What is this? I was expecting them to kiss!"

"Aww, poor Peri."

Peridot straightened herself up, pouting her lower lip. "It's not an impossible expectation, although at least we got something. I was worried that they would drag Lacey into an awkward romance with Marcy out of nowhere. Their relationship was never even given time to actually develop. Their issues were never discussed, yet they went out for a date! Lacey and Abbey never went on dates."

Amethyst gave her a small smile. "It ain't perfect, but hey, now Lacey and Abbey have each other." She brought herself closer to Peridot, hair just barely brushing Peridot's legs. "Doesn't need to be a kiss, right?"

"I suppose." She didn't really agree—how dare they not kiss?—but she couldn't argue with Amethyst that close to her face.

Amethyst glanced outside. Darkness washed over the sky. "Dang, we really binged on that," she said, yawning. "Let's hit the hay."

Peridot looked down, humming in thought. "I don't think there's any of that here—"

"Nooooooooo!" Amethyst slowly clasped her hand over Peridot's mouth, silencing her. "We need a full day reserved where I just teach you about earth sayings. But another time. I need a nap! Hey, how's that couch?"

Peridot glanced at the green couch behind them. She shrugged. "It's alright."

"You're not sleeping on the _floor_ , are you?" Amethyst jumped onto the couch, which let out a groaning creak.

"I'm not exactly tired."

Amethyst tisked. "Liar. You looked wiped." She leaned down, teeth showing in a playful smile. "You aren't afraid to getting clingy, are ya?"

"What?"

"Don't tell me you don't know what I'm talking about!"

Peridot was feeling uneasy already. "If you could inform me, that would be nice."

Amethyst patted the cushion beside her. Peridot didn't bother arguing and sat beside Amethyst, who crossed her legs to tell her story. "So you remember me staying over here that one night?" Peridot nodded. "Well, I got up to grab a nice midnight snack back at the Temple. You were knocked out by then. I sat down, and it takes, like, a minute before you kinda wake up... except you're more, uh, half asleep I guess. Lil' drowsy P-dot." Amethyst booped her nose, and Peridot covered it with flailing arms. "And you basically tried to cuddle up against me."

"Cuddle?"

"Peridot, you basically hugged me in your sleep and just did _not_ wanna let go."

"What?" Peridot exclaimed, her whole body heating up. The memory of waking up in Amethyst's arms several days before suddenly popped up, and if she could sink into the wood floor, it wouldn't be the worst possible thing now.

"It was cute! I didn't have it in me to wake you up." Amethyst's smile, rather than something mocking, was far more innocent, like she was caught in the act of something.

"Oh, stars." Peridot bowed her head, hand clasping the side of her head. "That's not cute. That's embarrassing."

Amethyst shook her head. "Don't think about it too much. I just thought it was funny. I mean, who would've thought that you, _Peridot_ , would be super clingy in her sleep? Like sleepwalking, but more adorable."

"How embarrassing..." Peridot muttered again to no one in particular.

Amethyst wrapped Peridot into her arms, pulling her into her chest. "I thought about waiting to use it for, I dunno, blackmail, but eh, I couldn't hold it in any longer."

"Well, if I start clinging to you in my sleep, I apologize," Peridot said, somewhat turning her head to Amethyst.

"No worries, Pear-bear."

Peridot rolled her eyes at the new nickname. Amethyst's grasp tightened on her, but still not too tight. Peridot felt her back press against Amethyst's front. The feeling of being held in such an intimate way made any sort of stress on Peridot's shoulders breeze away.

"I like it," Amethyst added softly.

Peridot smiled warmly. Perhaps it was the growing relaxation in her body, or how she _was_ fairly tired, but she responded, "Well, I like you."

Amethyst started snickering. Peridot nearly started _panicking_ , but then Amethyst spoke up between bits of laughter. "Oh my _gawd_ , Peri!"

"What?!" Peridot asked with a weak croak, realizing what she said and feeling her face burn.

"You know what! That was sooooooo cheesy. You're killin' me here!" Amethyst, still unable to control her loud laughter, buried her face into Peridot's neck. Her snickering practically brushed against Peridot's ear, which made Peridot shiver.

She turned away, however, pulling herself from Amethyst's hold, and Amethyst gradually calmed down. "But it's true! I like you a lot! I even have notes to show for it. They're a few days old, but I'm sure they still hold up."

Amethyst's excitement faded. Now she looked confused, but not entirely. More like she was figuring something out. She pointed at Peridot. "Wait... notes."

"Yes?"

"Steven said you had all these notes all over the place in here a few days ago. You're telling me they were _about me?!_ " Amethyst's eyes were huge by this point, her voice high and shrill.

"Is that not normal?"

Amethyst thought that over. "Uh, not totally, but well, since when were you ever normal? But still... why?!"

Peridot had trouble meeting Amethyst's gaze now, now that she was actually talking about something she _swore_ to keep secret. "I was trying to figure out the conclusion to a problem I was having."

"And... I was the problem?" Amethyst's tone implied she was only growing more confused as opposed to enlightened.

"Gyah! No!" Peridot sighed, collapsing further against the couch. "It wasn't a problem, per say, but I didn't just use notes. I brought what I was thinking to Steven several days ago. I thought perhaps he could help explain these... weird feelings I've been having... for you, I should clarify. That's where you come in." When she weakly gestured to Amethyst, Amethyst just blinked, her cheeks darkening. Peridot's own face was doing the same as she attempted to continue. "And he said it was... well, then I guess I realized it was..." Her voice failed her, however. _If only she had her recorder—_

Amethyst inched closer to Peridot, whose train of thought, or whatever was left of it, stopped with a screech. Her rambling ceased. "What was it, then?" Amethyst asked, wearing a nervous smile.

Garnet's words resonated in her head. _Whatever path you walk on all depends on your own choices… and Amethyst's._ Choices required voluntary action. Coming to a decision, saying something, or even **doing** something. Accomplishing nothing would lead to exactly that… nothing. And they would stay that way.

Beyond that thought, Peridot did not hesitate. She broke the very little distance between them and pressed her lips against Amethyst's.

Kissing was an unfamiliar concept beyond observation through the television. However, it gave Peridot that sensation that made her realize why _so_ many humans in those shows and movies participated in it. There was this spark that ignited, which amazed Peridot because their bodies were never known to conduct electricity. And it was just their lips, hers and Amethyst's because really, she wouldn't want to do it with anyone else, and Peridot was trying to take in all these new experiences from this one moment and it was going to make her lose her mind—

Peridot pulled back and realized Amethyst had remained frozen all throughout the kiss—which wasn't long considering the kiss lasted around four seconds. Stars bloomed in her eyes, and Peridot nearly got lost in her gaze.

"Does that answer your question?" Peridot asked, blushing.

Amethyst's starstruck gaze melted. Her un-starry eyes blinked and met Peridot's. The longest minute came into existence before she smiled. Then she started laughing, which made Peridot stiffen. "I think I've got an idea now," Amethyst said in a low voice.

Peridot gasped as Amethyst pulled her by the waist and brought their bodies together. She pushed their faces together in another kiss, one that lasted far longer.

When they separated again, their flustered faces were inches apart. "Much better than Lacey and Abbey, amirite?" Amethyst asked, grinning ear-to-ear.

Peridot perked up. "Absolutely! We'll excel over most couples, I imagine. I mean, just look at us." She reached a hand around Amethyst's shoulder, pointing the other between the two of them. "I can even make a chart, to prove it."

"C'mon, do we _really_ need a chart to prove it?"

"... You make a good point. It should be fairly obvious," Peridot said, but finished with a yawn.

"Tired?"

Peridot sighed. The exhaustion was beginning to overcome her; she supposed a severe lack of sleep the other night _did_ help that. "Admittedly, I am tired, but I can't help but worry that..." She stopped mid-sentence, knowing that she didn't need to say anything.

Amethyst's expression softened. "I feel ya. C'mere."

When Peridot brought herself into Amethyst's arms, they lay together against one end of the couch. Peridot looked up at Amethyst, this feeling of warmth washing over her. A feeling that made her not want to move, and rather just lay like this for hours. Her entire body relaxed.

"I'm getting the idea that having close company makes sleep much easier to accomplish," she muttered with a sigh.

"Well, I'll be sure to scare them nightmares away," Amethyst said in her ear.

Peridot peered down at Amethyst hand and took hold of it. "Me, too."

"You'll scare your nightmares away?"

" _You know what I mean!_ " Peridot exclaimed.

"Just kidding!" Amethyst chuckled, then kissed her cheek. "I know."

Peridot smiled at the contact on her cheek, and there was this lingering feeling still there, like an aftermath of the tender moment. Still smiling, she fell asleep with ease. In Amethyst's arms, she felt at peace, truly at ease, on Earth for the first time.

Thank you all for giving this crazy support. I'm sorry it took so unnecessarily long to get it out, but hey, stuff happens. I hope you enjoyed the story, and have a wonderful rest of the week.


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